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.

Italian referee leads the way in battling racist chants

Italian soccer has long struggled with racist chanting, a horror which has largely been stamped out in countries like England and Germany.

The problem persists in Italy but finally the tide is turning and ignorant fans are being beaten.

First Mario Balotelli was racially abused by Juventus fans while playing for Inter Milan two seasons ago. Italian soccer authorities had been handing out small fines for years but this time Juve were hit with a one-game stadium ban.  

A fallout from that incident was the decision to allow referees to suspend games if racist chanting is heard.

The odd racist song has continued in Italian stadiums over the past year and nothing was done. Until Sunday.

Only three minutes had been played in Cagliari’s game with Inter Milan when referee Paolo Tagliavento surprised everyone by stopping the match. A public announcement told Cagliari fans the game would be abandoned if the “monkey noises” aimed at Samuel Eto’o carried on.

The game resumed and no more chants were heard.

Ibra needs more than jeers to prove his worth

Barcelona striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic ignored the predictable boos on his first return to Inter Milan without answering the sceptics who still doubt his ability to finally make a mark in Europe.

Wednesday’s 0-0 draw in the Champions League Group F opener prompted more questions than answers for both sides, even if Barca shaded the contest in terms of chances and technical ability.

Swede Ibrahimovic hopes his pre-season swap deal with Samuel Eto’o can turn him into one of the most feared strikers in the continent after invariably flattering to deceive for Inter in the Champions League.

His talents in domestic soccer are undoubted, given he inspired Inter to three Italian titles, and he was fully prepared for jeers from parts of the San Siro.

“Some whistled, it’s normal when you lose a player you did not want to lose,” he told reporters. “With a bit of luck I could even have scored.”

In truth, Ibrahimovic snatched at a good early chance and generally failed to impose himself despite some tidy link-up play.

Who will win the battle between Ibra and Eto’o?

Boy, the Champions League is back with a bang. How much juicier can you get than holders Barcelona at Inter Milan in their first game?  

If the Spanish champions against their Italian counterparts wasn’t enough, we’ve got the added spice of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Samuel Eto’o playing against their former clubs at the first possible opportunity following their extraordinary close-season swap deal.

Barca midfielder Xavi has told Reuters it will still be strange to line up against Eto’o on Wednesday while Inter’s Jose Mourinho, who has had an up and down relationship with the Catalans, has been stealing the headlines as usual.

“Eto’o is the best attacker in the world. My players are always better. Last year Ibrahimovic was the best forward in the world, now I say Eto’o,” he told reporters.

So will Ibra come back to haunt the San Siro or will Eto’o prove that Inter are not missing him?

No one is really sure what reception the Swede will get on Wednesday.

Eto’o's arrival could change Inter’s entire approach

It is a bit early to be making judgements on the new Inter Milan (especially after a lacklustre first league game) but the 4-0 thrashing of AC Milan at the weekend suggests the Samuel Eto’o-Zlatan Ibrahimovic swap could completely change their way of playing.

Ibrahimovic, who scored on his Barcelona debut in Monday’s 3-0 win over Sporting Gijon, was everything to Inter. He was the target man, the talisman, the go-to man when a flash of inspiration or a goal was needed.

Inter’s over-reliance on the tall Swede was only exposed in Europe when better defences than in Serie A shut him out and nullified Inter’s occasional long ball approach.

In Saturday’s derby, Inter passed the ball more than I remember them doing under Jose Mourinho last season. Thiago Motta, a midfielder with attacking instincts which they lacked last term, scored a wonderful opening goal following a flurry of quick passes.

Forward Diego Milito, also a new signing from Genoa, then blasted in a penalty. Eto’o had taken the spotkick in the previous weekend’s 1-1 draw with Bari but he was quite happy to share the duties with his strike partner.

Inter suddenly looked like a collective group far more than they had in the four years of Ibra.

Unimaginative Inter could have taken punt on Cassano

Inter Milan coach Jose Mourinho has again lamented the lack of a playmaker* following Sunday’s 1-1 home draw with Bari in their Serie A opener.

Creativity was already a problem for the champions last season and now talented striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has left for Barcelona, it is difficult to see where inspiration is going to come from judging by their Super Cup defeat to Lazio and the Bari draw.

Samuel Eto’o is a goalpoacher while Dejan Stankovic, who occupies the role behind the front two, is a hard-working midfielder at best.

Mourinho has said the club is working to bring in a playmaker before the transfer window closes but with Deco too pricey at Chelsea and Wesley Sneijder looking happy to bide his time at Real Madrid, the options are limited.

But there is Sampdoria’s reformed wildchild Antonio Cassano. He has certainly matured in the last two years after annoying a slew of coaches with his behaviour and at the moment is undoubtedly the most talented Italian with the ball at his feet.

Reports linking Inter with Cassano have swirled for months and Mourinho is an admirer, although he cryptically said at the weekend that Cassano now played too far forward to be considered a playmaker and had blotted his copybook by daring to score against the champions last term.

Can Ibrahimovic fit in at Barca after Super Cup showing?

Barcelona’s new signing Zlatan Ibrahimovic was given a glowing report by Pep Guardiola after their Spanish Super Cup victory over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.

But the doubts remain as to whether his qualities will be enough to replace or improve upon those the side have lost with the swap deal which sent former number nine Samuel Eto’o to Inter Milan.

The Swedish striker lined up from the start between Lionel Messi and Thierry Henry for the first time, and helped Barca sweep aside the visitors 3-0 to win the curtain-raiser to the new season 5-1 on aggregate.

Messi grabbed the headlines with a brace, and Ibrahimovic’s second-half replacement, Bojan Krkic, added the other goal.

“Ibrahimovic was perfect,” Guardiola said. “Everyone is worried about how he will pressure our rivals’ defences, but I have no doubts.

“Because he’s so tall he doesn’t appear very dynamic, but he will pressure as required for the team. Step by step he will adapt to our needs.”

Why are Barcelona paying so much for Ibrahimovic?

If your first reaction on hearing about the Samuel Eto’o-Zlatan Ibrahimovic deal was “How much?” then I can assure you you weren’t the only one.

To land Ibrahimovic, who is due to be presented this evening at the Nou Camp, Barcelona will not only hand over the Cameroon international striker but will also give Inter Milan a reported 45 million euros and the loan, for one season, of Aleksandr Hleb.

According to Marca, who are not exactly fans of Barcelona it must be said, that makes the total cost of the Swedish striker at least 87.5 million euros (with Eto’o valued at 35 million, and Hleb for a season at 7.5).

So how on earth is Ibrahimovic worth close to 90 million euros? How on earth is he valued at double Eto’o, one of the world’s top strikers?

Ibrahimovic is the sort of striker coaches love. Tall and strong, he is happy playing with his back to goal and therefore gives the team a target man. He scores goals too, of course, and he has contributed to six league title-winning campaigns with Ajax and Inter.

But Eto’o is no mean player himself. The Cameroon international is also strong but relies more on his skill and explosive pace to get past defences. After signing for Barcelona in 2004 he proved to be the missing piece in the puzzle, joining forces with Ronaldinho to get the team back to title-winning ways.

Will Ibra-Eto’o swap actually happen?

It would be among the biggest swap deals ever in soccer but there is a long way to go before it becomes reality.

Inter Milan and Barcelona may have agreed to the transfers of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Samuel Eto’o (plus a bit of cash for the Italians on top) but the players have yet to agree terms and that looks trickier than might be expected.

Manchester City pulled out of talks with Eto’o after becoming frustrated while media reports say he is asking for astronomical wages.

Ibrahimovic on the other hand is reportedly the most paid player in the world and Barca will have to be careful not to destroy their wage structure if they want to recruit him.

Furthermore, Barca president Joan Laporta met Inter’s Massimo Moratti earlier in the close season and they both agreed a swap deal was not a good idea because they still wanted to keep their strikers.

The situation has changed since then, with Ibrahimovic repeating a desire for a fresh challenge and Eto’o looking more like departing, but in soccer money talks and there could still be more twists.

Should Barcelona let Eto’o go?

While Real Madrid were tying up their deal to sign Kaka from AC Milan, Barcelona seemed curiously ambivalent about the possibility of losing one of their big-name players, the  Cameroon striker Samuel Eto’o .

The 28-year-old has a contract until 2010 when he will be able to leave free of cost, unless an extension can be agreed or the club decide to cash in on him now.

The first meeting to discuss the issue between his agent Jose Maria Mesalles and Barca’s sports director Txiki Begiristain, took place on Monday with very little seemingly resolved.

“The technical staff and the representative have met to try and agree a period of continuity, which is what we would like,” Barca president Joan Laporta said on the club website.

Mesalles said no renewal proposal had been forthcoming so far, but insisted Eto’o wanted to continue.

He was quoted in Spanish media as saying: “We are open to every possibility. If we have to look at a renewal we will study it, but if there is another possibility we will study that too.”

Inter Milan and Manchester City have been linked with interest for Eto’o, while Barca are reported to have considered a swap deal involving Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and moves for Atletico Madrid’s Diego Forlan or Olympique Lyon’s Karim Benzema*, or maybe even Bayern Munich;s Luca Toni.