Milan’s hard-fought victory against Cremonese confirms the limitations of Allegri’s team. Which, however, is traveling with the same points as Napoli who won the championship last season.
Without Pavlovic’s header (nose?) less than a minute from the end, the derby on 8 March would have lost what little charm it retains because a gap of 12 points would have been definitive even for the incurable optimists, those convinced there is still something to write about in the sprint towards the scudetto. Then Pavlovic completed Bartesaghi’s last effort, who ended up getting hurt while taking the winning corner, and so the nightmare of yet another Sunday spent hitting the wall of a provincial road vanished.
It’s the usual AC Milan that arrives at the presumed Italian clash with Chivu’s highly successful Inter. The best on the pitch in Cremona was Audero, goalkeeper of the Grigiorossi. The worst are Leao and Pulisic, because it is not possible to have such a low percentage of achievement as that of the two improvised attackers that last summer’s transfer market bequeathed to Max Allegri.
Who is working a miracle, only you can’t see it because Inter are in front, traveling at the speed of light. Take note of all those who skinned their hands a year ago to applaud the ride of the Naples by Conte: after 27 days the points are the same (57), the defeats are half (2 against 4), the goals scored are identical and the ones conceded are fewer (20 against 22). Obviously the frame of the picture changes because then Inter had 58 points and today they are at 67. Allegri should sue those who accuse him of not having given an identity and a soul to his Milan, but he is a gentleman and will limit himself to bringing them back to the Champions League well in advance.
Against Cremonese it took 20 shots towards Audero’s goal to see the wall fall, but not without taking some risks behind it. The cautioned players (present) emerged unscathed from the trap of the pre-derby yellow card and in one case, the shooting star Saelemaekers, they have the desire to thank Mass not to ruin the week for himself and the poor Rocchi to whom the usual keyboard lions attribute the responsibility of having cut off Milan’s legs in the decisive moment of the season. Lions were and remain lions, obviously silent when things go right.
Now the derby that will have no favourites. In the long run there is no match between Inter and Milan, the picture is the 10 point advantage for the Nerazzurri despite the Rossoneri having had a championship worthy of applause so far. In the single match, however, everything comes back into play also because the question from the sports bar on Monday morning is: for Chivu the semi-final against Como, the entrance gate to the doubleor the championship-killing derby?
