Resurgent AC Milan host Real Madrid in the Champions League later having beaten the Galacticos 3-2 at the Bernabeu two weeks ago.

Meanwhile Inter Milan are seven points clear in Serie A after just 11 games. All would seem to be rosy in one of Europe’s greatest soccer cities, but in reality Italian football is in the doldrums.

Mark Meadows discusses.

David Beckham will tread a familiar path once the MLS season is over, joining AC Milan on loan again for a five-month loan spell from January.

Milan have just announced the deal on their website (just in Italian for now), meaning any lingering hopes Premier League clubs had of changing the England midfielder’s mind have finally been dashed.

Milan sound thrilled:

“We are very happy to David Beckham in the red and black shirt again after the splendid experience of last season,” Milan chief executive Adriano Galliani told www.acmilan.com.

“We are sure that this period in Europe will help the player to take part in the next World Cup and then to continue his career at Los Angeles Galaxy, whom we thank for their help.”

Beckham’s main target is obviously the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, as the Milan chief hints. Wonder if he’ll be on the plane…

PHOTO: Los Angeles Galaxy’s David Beckham walks on the field during Game 1 of their MLS Cup western conference semifinal soccer playoff series against Chivas USA in Carson, California, November 1, 2009. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok

The coaches of the three biggest Serie A clubs recently indulged in what has always been one of the favourite pastimes of the older and wiser — picking fault with today’s youngsters.

Inter Milan boss Jose Mourinho kicked things off when he criticised 19-year-old forward Mario Balotelli’s approach in training and suggested that footballers of his age were more interested in Ferraris and Bentleys than getting on with the job.

“It’s probably a generational problem,” Mourinho said. “At the moment it’s very difficult to find a player who’s 19 or 20 and thinks like a man.”

Reporters asked Juventus coach Ciro Ferrara what he thought, but if they hoped to stir up another Mourinho-versus-the-rest-of-Italy row, they were disappointed.

“I agree. It’s a problem of values,” Ferrara said. “Things have changed a lot and the purely sporting side often drops down to a secondary level.

“A young player becomes a star after just a few matches in Serie A. Million-euro contracts arrive and thoughts immediately go to the national team. It’s difficult for them to keep their feet on the ground.”

AC Milan boss Leonardo agreed too.

“I understand what Mourinho is saying. It’s difficult to teach certain values to youngsters,” he told reporters, adding that he believed it was a problem for society as a whole, not just soccer.

Maybe the managers have a point and all the money pouring into football has corrupted the game’s budding talent.

I’m not so sure. Football has always had its share of prima donnas and players who, let’s say, gave great importance to the economic side of the profession.

Moreover, those wondering why young players find it harder to get a chance to shine in Serie A than in other top flights, might have be given a clue to the riddle.

PHOTO: Inter Milan’s coach Jose Mourinho (L) argues with his player Mario Balotelli during their Serie A match against Siena at San Siro, May 17, 2009. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

Brazil-born Juventus striker Amauri failed to get an Italian passport in time for Italy’s upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Georgia and Bulgaria but he hopes the documentation will come through soon.

Azzurri coach Marcello Lippi has indicated he will then consider Amauri for international duty but said he did not want the situation to be repeated.

This seems to have ended any chance of Inter Milan midfielder Thiago Motta following Amauri’s lead. The former Barcelona and Atletico Madrid player could qualify for Italy if FIFA decided his two Brazil appearances in the CONCACAF Gold Cup did not count as full caps because it was a under-23 team.

After Diego’s classy brace in his second game for Juventus, many Italians became excited when they realised the playmaker has Italian lineage. However, they forgot the basic rule that Diego had played competitively for Brazil and therefore was not eligible for Italy.

Arsenal striker Eduardo da Silva plays for Croatia despite being born in Brazil while the London club’s uncapped Spanish goalkeeper Manuel Almunia has often been talked about as a potential England candidate.

Is the situation out of hand? I’m just old enough to remember when domestic clubs had a majority of players from the local town. Now few top sides have players from the same country.

Is international football going the same way? Why not have Premier League v Serie A rather than England v Italy?

Liverpool’s Alberto Aquilani and Andrea Dossena may feel a bit torn.

PHOTO: Juventus forward Amauri warms up during a training session at the Stadio Olimpico in Turin March 9, 2009.REUTERS/Alessandro Bianchi

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.

Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, however. Milan were awful and Gennaro Gattuso’s dismissal, after he had asked to come off with an injury but couldn’t because substitute Clarence Seedorf wasn’t ready, summed up their display.

Inter need to prove again and again that they are now more pleasing on the eye, especially in Europe…

PHOTO: Inter Milan’s Samuel Eto’o celebrates their win at the end of the Italian serie A soccer match against AC Milan at the San Siro stadium in Milan August 29, 2009. REUTERS/Alessandro Garofalo

Jose Mourinho is no stranger to run-ins with rival club managers, but this week the Portuguese raised his aim and had a swipe at Italian national team boss Marcello Lippi.

The Inter Milan coach had taken exception to Lippi tipping Juventus for this year’s Serie A title.
He accused him of lacking respect, arguing a national team coach should be seen to be impartial even if deep down he wants Juve to win (Lippi had two glorious stints at the Turin club split by a dismal, short one at Inter).

Mourinho even added mysteriously that “this makes me think a great deal”.

Lippi responded by saying it was just a prediction: “Mourinho seemed an intelligent person to me, I’m sorry he’s interpreted things differently. You can’t say half a word”.

The Inter boss’s reaction struck me as a little thin skinned too. It’s not as if Lippi said he was rooting for Juve or would be lending a hand to their new boss Ciro Ferrara, his former assistant in the Italy backroom staff.

But I was surprised to see in a survey on La Gazzetta dello Sport’s website that, while most people were on Lippi’s side, a sizeable minority of around 40 percent believed Mourinho had grounds to grumble.

What do you think? Is Mourinho overreacting, possibly in an attempt to instil a siege mentality into his players for the upcoming campaign? Or should Lippi keep his predictions to himself in future?

PHOTO: Inter Milan’s coach Jose Mourinho (L) gestures during their Italian Super Cup soccer match against Lazio at the National Olympic Stadium in Beijing August 8, 2009. REUTERS/David Gray

While everyone at AS Roma would probably do the Birdie song standing on their heads if Francesco Totti asked, the Italian capital’s golden boy learned his charms have limits this week.

The striker has been hinting for some time he’d like to come out of international retirement, having quit Italy after being part of Lippi’s 2006 World Cup-winning team.

The most recent come-get-me call was last month, when he said he would “think twice” about returning if Marcello Lippi picked up the phone.

But Lippi is either not getting the signals or he’s turning a deaf ear.

“Francesco is an extraordinary lad and player, but he’s made his decision and I’m not going back on it,” Lippi told reporters at the Azzurri’s training camp for Wednesday’s friendly in Switzerland.

There are two ways the Roma captain can interpret this. Either Lippi wants him back but would like the player to explicitly say he has made a U-turn, so it doesn’t seem like the boss is coming cap in hand for help after Italy’s dreadful Confederations Cup showing.

Or Lippi has no place in his plans for a gifted-yet-injury prone 32-year-old and Totti’s retirement is a good way to sidestep the issue. After all, Lippi already has plenty of people on the wrong side of their prime — what he needs are more players whose best days are in front of them.

I suspect it’s the second option. In which case, Totti would be wise to stop dropping the hints, take Paolo Maldini’s lead and devote his exception talents exclusively to his club in the twilight of his career.

PHOTO: AS Roma’s Francesco Totti celebrates after scoring against Ghent during their UEFA Europa League qualifier at the Otten stadium in Ghent Aug 6, 2009. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir

You would think ex-Inter Milan striker Julio Cruz and former AS Roma defender Christian Panucci might be panicking about not having a club just a few weeks before the start of the season.

At 34 and 36, there surely is no time to lose.

In reality, they seem quite happy to bide their time and wait for the right offer like other top players released by their clubs.

Waiting until the season starts to find a club means their ageing limbs don’t have to be put through the torture of full pre-season training after years of running up hills and playing meaningless friendlies in bizarre places.

By leaving a decision until the last moment, a bidding war could ensue between interested clubs and wage offers could sky rocket. Argentine Cruz, a saviour for Inter so many times with late goals, has been linked with Roma, Lazio, Napoli and now Bologna.

The end of the transfer window on Aug 31 also does not apply to out-of-contract players, meaning there is no artificial rush.

In one sense it pays too for clubs to wait until just before the season rather than snapping players up in June. They don’t have to shell out two months of wages…

PHOTO: Inter Milan’s Julio Cruz celebrates after scoring against Lazio during their Italian Cup semi-final, second leg in Rome May 7, 2008. REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

Inter Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the ultimate soccer enigma.

He scores goals for fun when playing Bologna, Chievo and Palermo but often goes missing against AC Milan, Manchester United or Liverpool (which is why he is never in the running for the top awards despite the incredulity of Inter fans).

The tall-yet-skilful attacker has been racking up Serie A titles but the Champions League seems a distant prospect and with all due respect to Sweden, he is not likely to win any honours in international football.

If you want someone to outrageously chip the keeper, Ibra is your man, but don’t expect him to always score that tap-in.

Judging how much these sorts of players (Antonio Cassano? Dimitar Berbatov?) are worth is very tricky, especially after he admitted at the end of last season that he fancied a new challenge.

Inter president Massimo Moratti slapped a 70 million euro price on his head which scared off Barcelona and Real Madrid. If Kaka cost 67, can Ibra really be worth more?

Without a bid forthcoming, the forward returned to pre-season training with Inter last week saying he was “happy”. Moratti then said the player was off the market.

Now English newspapers say Manchester United and Chelsea have come sniffing. Chelsea’s reported offer would be 50 million plus Deco and Ricardo Carvalho, two players Inter coach Jose Mourinho wants.

A move is suddenly back on the table but like everything with Ibrahimovic, any transfer is bound to be complicated, especially as he has just jetted off on a U.S. tour with Inter.

What’s your bet on where Ibra will end up? I reckon he’ll still be at the San Siro come September…

PHOTO: Inter Milan’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic celebrates after scoring against Lazio in their Italian Serie A soccer match at San Siro stadium in Milan, May 2, 2009. REUTERS/Stefan Rellandini

Ever since returning to Serie A following their demotion for match-fixing, Juventus have had a terrible run in the transfer market.

Third and second-placed finishes in their two years back in the top flight are largely thanks to players who stuck with Juve during their season in Serie B such as Alessandro Del Piero and Giorgio Chiellini.

In contrast, new recruits such as midfielders Tiago and Christian Poulsen have been frustrating at best while former Aston Villa defender Olof Mellberg lasted just a season before being shipped off to Olympiakos.

Juve have also tried to sell Poulsen and Tiago but both players have said they would rather stay.

Right back Zdenek Grygera has not convinced all the Juve faithful while striker Amauri had a good start to last term following a big move from Palermo but his form fizzled out towards the end of the campaign.

For this season Juve have re-signed Fabio Cannavaro from Real Madrid, a move which has angered fans who have not forgiven him for leaving the club following their demotion. (Cannavaro argues it was Juve’s economic decision to sell).

Brazilian playmaker Diego, who has arrived from Werder Bremen, obviously has the skill but supporters worry his style of play will not suit Juve’s traditional 4-4-2 formation and may upset the apple cart.

Juve’s bid for Udinese midfielder Gaetana D’Agostino looks to have failed and media reports say they are now targeting Liverpool’s Xabi Alonso having surprisingly opted to pursue Poulsen last year rather than the technically superior Spaniard.

Can they get it right this time and really challenge Inter Milan for the scudetto?

PHOTO: Juventus midfielder Christian Poulsen (R) fights for the ball with Inter Milan’s Luis Figo during their Italian Serie A match in Turin April 18, 2009. REUTERS/Alessandro Garofalo