Reuters Soccer Blog

Is Benitez at fault for Inter implosion?

A lack of fit players, lack of effective training, lack of buys, lack of hunger, lack of Jose Mourinho.

The possible reasons for Inter Milan’s troubles, which leave coach Rafael Benitez clinging to his job, are widespread and not all his fault but the treble winners have to do something to reverse their steady decline.

Sunday’s 2-1 defeat at Chievo, which put Inter nine points off top spot, followed the derby defeat by AC Milan and media reports reckon Benitez could be axed if the holders slip up at home to Twente Enschede in Wednesday’s Champions League clash. Samuel Eto’o's crazy Zidane-like headbutt against Chievo, which is set to lead to a lengthy Serie A ban, comes at the worst possible time for the Spaniard.

A glance at the factors behind their poor form shows Benitez is only half to blame.

1. Lack of fit players. Benitez says it’s just bad luck that top players Diego Milito, Maicon, Julio Cesar, Walter Samuel,  Esteban Cambiasso, Cristian Chivu and Coutinho have all been injured at the same time. Losing so many players has disrupted the team and led to disjointed performances because of  enforced formation changes. But….

2. Lack of effective training. Critics say the catalogue of injuries are happening because of Benitez’s training regime which compared to last season’s exercises under Jose Mourinho is stretching muscles to breaking point. The former Liverpool coach has denied that his training methods are at fault and says it is just misfortune.

3. Lack of buys. Benitez cannot be blamed for this one. As soon as he was appointed he called for some fresh investment but club president Massimo Moratti reckoned that the European champions had ample options thank you very much. He was wrong.  The injuries have exposed the weaknesses in the squad and with Wesley Sneijder struggling slightly for form. there is no obvious alternative to the Dutchman as playmaker.

The missing World Cup XI

You could go for a three-pronged attack of Nani, Didier Drogba and Arjen Robben. How about Michael Ballack, David Beckham, John Obi Mikel and Michael Essien in your midfield? And build your defence around Rio Ferdinand.

Welcome to a new kind of Fantasy Football — the World Cup Injured XI.

I haven’t yet scoured the statistics books, but veterans in the game cannot remember a World Cup so badly hit by injuries to big names before it even started. Not all of them are out for the whole tournament, of course, but some big names are , and what a shame the first World Cup on the continent has already lost so much star power.

So what’s the reason for all these injuries? Is it simply an older generation past its prime? Are players simply less tough than their predecessors? Are the modern physical demands too much? Or is just bad luck?

As you theorise, pick your XI from the increasing list of fantastic players on the injury-table. Here’s a first stab from my colleague Patrick Johnston, with a few overlooked players thrown in to make it a real Missing World Cup XI:

Goalkeeper:  Rene Adler – Germany’s first-choice goalkeeper was forced to withdraw from the preliminary squad after requiring rib surgery.

Defenders:

Drogba, Ferdinand…who next for the World Cup curse?

A top player seems to get injured on the eve of every major tournament and this year it looks like Didier Drogba and Rio Ferdinand have suffered the World Cup curse.

Ivory Coast captain Drogba is seriously doubtful for the extravaganza after injuring his elbow in a friendly against Japan on Friday.

England captain Ferdinand is out of the tournament after he hobbled out of hospital on crutches following a scan on his injured left knee.

The 31-year-old defender suffered the injury in the final minutes of England’s first major training session in South Africa after he went into a tackle and fell badly.

Italy’s Andrea Pirlo has also suffered a calf strain and could also miss the whole World Cup.

It’s still seven days before the big kick off and there could be yet more injuries in the runup.

Germany’s continuing midfield mayhem

When Germany captain Michael Ballack was ruled out of the World Cup following a scan on his ankle last week there was no doubt this was a major setback for the three-times champions. By far the most experienced player, Ballack was the team’s leader having taken Germany to World Cup and Euro finals. The loss of midfielder Christian Traesch, only days after Ballack’s injury, could prove an even heavier blow.

Traesch injured his ankle in a friendly match against South Tirol this week and will be out for six weeks. Traesch was seen as someone who could take over the bulk of Ballack’s midfield duties. But with both of them out coach Joachim Loew has got to seriously reshuffle his squad to strike the right balance in defence and midfield without compromising either.

Assistant coach Hansi Flick suggested that Dennis Aogo and Heiko Westermann could slip into that role, playing down concerns of what the Traesch injury could mean. But Aogo, who is versatile enough and can play in central midfield, is more comfortable at left-back. Westermann on the other hand would ideally play in central defence alongside Per Mertesacker. Dragging Westermann into midfield , Loew would also reduce his defensive options at a time when Mertesacker is short of his best form and speedy Ghanaian attackers or strong Serbian and Australian forwards are lying in wait.

Moving defender Philipp Lahm into that role would also mean taking one of the world’s most consistent full-backs (he can play either side with great ease) out of their natural habitant.

Apart from the starting keeper position and who will replace Ballack as captain of the team, Loew must also solve a midfield conundrum that was just made a lot harder.

PHOTO: German national soccer player Michael Ballack and assistant coaches watch a training session at Hotel Rocco Forte Verdura near the Sicilian town of Sciacca, southern Italy, May 18, 2010. REUTERS/Markus Gilliar/Pool

from Left field:

Who will rise to the occasion and become a worthy replacement for Beckham?

Fabio Capello has plenty of options for the right midfield slot, even if David Beckham's snapped Achilles rules him out of the World Cup.

Between Shaun Wright-Phillips, Theo Walcott, Aaron Lennon (if fit) and James Milner there is a wealth of talent at the Italian's disposal.

The nagging worry for Capello may be the question of why one of those younger players has not made the position his own already.

There have been plenty of opportunities after all. It's four years since Beckham resigned as captain after the World Cup in Germany. It might have been the end of his international career but Steve McClaren eventually recalled him and Capello has made him a regular in the squad, if not the starting line-up.

Now the prospect of Beckham coming off the bench and to the rescue has gone, it should be a signal for Wright-Phillips and co that someone needs to take responsibility in that area and give Capello one less thing to worry about, as the gruelling and relentless English season lurches into its eighth month.

Wes Brown has fallen prey to the curse of the metatarsal -- a broken toe that in the past has previously cut down Beckham, Gary Neville, Michael Owen and Wayne Rooney twice -- and is fighting to make the World Cup.

Capello's other main right back Glen Johnson is only just tentatively returning to action after ankle ligament damage that kept him out for more than two months. Left back Ashley Cole has a broken ankle that will at best leave him desperately rusty and at worse rule him out of the tournament altogether, while his obvious replacement, Wayne Bridge, has retired from the international game after his personal problems with centre-back and former captain John Terry.

The sad case of Patrick Vieira

Portsmouth are interested in bringing Inter Milan’s Patrick Vieira back to England.

The only problem is that the former Arsenal man is injured…again. 

I’ve been the Reuters sports correspondent in Milan for nearly two years and I have interviewed Vieira more times than I have seen him play live.

A catalogue of knocks has led many fans to forget one of the most-powerful midfield players in a generation. 

The 32-year-old admitted last week that he may not play for France much longer.

When he has turned out for Inter, he has looked a shadow of the long-legged, rampaging figure we all remember from his Arsenal days.

Cannavaro out but Italy can cope

Italy may be thinking the gods are against them after World Cup-winning captain Fabio Cannavaro was ruled out of Euro 2008 after being injured in their first training session in Austria. They needn’t worry too much.

The 2006 World Player of Year suffered ankle ligament damage after a robust tackle by fellow defender Giorgio Chiellini, who will now be in the running to take his place in the backline.

The dogged Chiellini is very much in the mould of his captain and would not let the Azzurri down. In fact, he would offer more pace than Cannavaro, who is 34 and has slowed down a lot since Germany two years ago.

The Real Madrid defender is also not as composed as he was and tends to make more errors. In contrast, fellow centre back Andrea Barzagli has hardly put a foot wrong after bursting on to the international scene during Italy’s qualifying campaign.

Marco Materazzi is also in the squad and although he has his faults, his height made him tower over Cannavaro when they played together. He remains a good option.

Defender Alessandro Gamberini is also jetting out to Austria as a replacement for Cannavaro following an excellent season at Fiorentina.

As for the captaincy, authoritative goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is likely to take the armband. He is highly respected by his team mates and can certainly blow away the myth that keepers do not make good skippers.