Kickoff : 6.30pm
League : World Club Championship (Semi-Final 2)
YOKOHAMA, Japan, Dec 11 (Reuters) - A sulking striker and a manager apparently facing the bullet hardly provide a solid base from which to launch an assault on the Club World Cup.
AC Milan's preparations have been far from smooth, despite red-carpet treatment in Japan and the avalanche of awards recently bestowed on playmaker Kaka.
The European champions take on Japan's Urawa Reds in their semi-final on Thursday with Brazilian Ronaldo still injured and increasingly isolated from the squad.
The former world player of the year, out with a calf strain, has been cutting a forlorn figure, visiting the spa of the team's luxury hotel while his team mates train in Yokohama.
Speculation that Milan want to bring in former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho to replace Carlo Ancelotti at the end of the season has done little to ease the tensions with the club.
'The tension and the pressure are mounting,' said Massimo Ambrosini, Milan's de facto captain with the 39-year-old Paolo Maldini rarely starting in his final season.
'I feel them of course. We have had to wait a week for the semi-final which is too long. We all having the feeling that this is a date with destiny.
'It would be huge to take such an important trophy as the Club World Cup back to Italy with us.'
Kickoff : 6.30pm
AC Milan's preparations have been far from smooth, despite red-carpet treatment in Japan and the avalanche of awards recently bestowed on playmaker Kaka.
The European champions take on Japan's Urawa Reds in their semi-final on Thursday with Brazilian Ronaldo still injured and increasingly isolated from the squad.
The former world player of the year, out with a calf strain, has been cutting a forlorn figure, visiting the spa of the team's luxury hotel while his team mates train in Yokohama.
Speculation that Milan want to bring in former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho to replace Carlo Ancelotti at the end of the season has done little to ease the tensions with the club.
'The tension and the pressure are mounting,' said Massimo Ambrosini, Milan's de facto captain with the 39-year-old Paolo Maldini rarely starting in his final season.
'I feel them of course. We have had to wait a week for the semi-final which is too long. We all having the feeling that this is a date with destiny.
'It would be huge to take such an important trophy as the Club World Cup back to Italy with us.'
Kickoff : 6.30pm
League : World Club Championship (Semi Final)
Early preview from Soccernet :
Milan are slight favourites to win the seven-team tournament despite their current league position of 10th -- 19 points adrift of Serie A leaders Inter Milan.
'This could be the turning point of our season,' said Ambrosini. 'Nineteen points is a big gap. We lost too much ground early but we still have the Champions League.'
An expected win over Asian champions Urawa will set up a likely final against South American Libertadores Cup holders Boca Juniors in Yokohama on December 16.
The Argentine giants face Tunisia's Etoile Sahel in Wednesday's first semi-final in Tokyo.
Kaka, meanwhile, has become the new darling of the Japanese media and fans, who scream his name during training -- treatment once reserved for former England captain David Beckham.
'My only thought is to take the Club World Cup back to Milan,' said the Brazilian, clearly less at ease with the yelling fans than Beckham.
'Not many people can say they've won this competition. It is a wonderful opportunity for me and the team. It would be silly to let it slip.'
'This could be the turning point of our season,' said Ambrosini. 'Nineteen points is a big gap. We lost too much ground early but we still have the Champions League.'
An expected win over Asian champions Urawa will set up a likely final against South American Libertadores Cup holders Boca Juniors in Yokohama on December 16.
The Argentine giants face Tunisia's Etoile Sahel in Wednesday's first semi-final in Tokyo.
Kaka, meanwhile, has become the new darling of the Japanese media and fans, who scream his name during training -- treatment once reserved for former England captain David Beckham.
'My only thought is to take the Club World Cup back to Milan,' said the Brazilian, clearly less at ease with the yelling fans than Beckham.
'Not many people can say they've won this competition. It is a wonderful opportunity for me and the team. It would be silly to let it slip.'
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FREAKTIPS PREVIEW
Hard to decide for this match as for which team will clear the Asian Handicap offered. No doubt AC Milan would most likely qualify for the finals, but news have been spreading around about the Milan team being in turmoil now. The spotlight of the media have been targetted on Ronaldo and Ancelotti. The striker for his isolation from the team and the coach who's head is on the chopping board by end of this season. Milan's faltering start in the league seeing them trailing Inter Milan by 19 points, has only strenghten the rumour that The One Mourinho would be taking over come next season.
Urawa would be on high spirits after a convincing 3-1 win against Sepahan. Playing at home country Japan, the weather and pitch conditions would definitely be on their side. An opportunity to knock out Milan and qualify for the finals would make up for the dissapointment of losing the league title a couple of weeks back.
Lets do a comparison on the advantages and disadvantages of both teams
Fans : No doubt Urawa playing in Japan would have the majority of the crowd behind their backs for this match. Never the less Milan has a large fan base in Japan as well (probably made up from girls who go goo-goo gaa-gaa over Kaka). I would say the fan support for this match would be rather balanced out here.
Conditions : The pitch and weather as well as the time zone are perfect for Urawa since the game is held in Yokohama. AC Milan's team though have a week to get accustomized and acclimatized to the temperature and pitch in the Yokohama stadium. Slight edge here for Urawa Reds.
Players : AC Milan's Champions League winning squad is being paraded for this match. In terms of quality and skill, AC Milan is head and shoulders above Urawa. Milan take the point here.
Desire : Urawa of course would be aiming to knock favorites AC Milan and arguably the best team out of this competition. Playing at home with fan support would spurr Urawa players to play their hearts out against Milan. Milan on the other hand has a point to prove. Ancelotti desires for this cup to soften the rumours of him being replaced and his players would definitely want to add the winning medal to their already trophy laden cabinet. Both team has got different agenda yet with equal desire to win. I call it even for both teams in this category.
Odds : Oddsmakers expect Milan to win by at least a single goal from this match. My odds calculation also supports this match for Milan to clear the Asian Handicap offered.
Summary:
Based on the several comparison made above, I see Milan having an edge over Urawa especially in terms of player quality. They have been at big matches and come away with countless victories. The semi-finals of the World Club Championship would have no effect on the confidence and composure of the Milan players. In fact Urawa might be the team suffering from cold feet for this match.
In conclusion, Milan to shine in this match.
Verdict : AC Milan -1.25 FT (5 STAR), & AC Milan Win (5 STAR)
1 comment:
As predicted, Milan won the game but with a single goal margin.
Won on punting "AC Milan to Win" but lost half on Asian Handicap thanks to Urawa defensive play.
Urawa played to conservatively hoping to bring the game to Penalty Kicks. They payed the price for underestimating Kaka's sublime skills allowing Kaka to provide Seedorf with the only goal of the game.
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