Alessandro Del Piero Confident Juventus Have Overcome Bad Spell

Juventus striker Alessandro Del Piero has seen his team-mates smile again, and play with lots of enthusiasm, as the positive results are rolling in for the Bianconeri.

The Turin giants remain the only team left in the Europa League, after the elimination of Roma by Greek side Panathinaikos.


"In this period, the results are finally arriving. The team is satisfied that we progressed through to the next phase of the competition," the 35-year-old stated to Corriere Dello Sport. "With the elimination of Roma, we are the only Italian side left in the tournament.

"I am disappointed that Roma could not go further than they did. It would have been great for Italian football."

'Pinturicchio' also revealed something about how coach Alberto Zaccheroni approached this evening's match.

"The coach evaluates every opponent, and the situation the side finds itself in. It is then up to the players to follow his instructions.

"At the start of the season, I had many injuries, and suffered. But now that I am fit, I am pleased to be playing a vital role for the team," Del Piero concluded.

Goals from Marco Borriello and Pato were enough to give the Rossoneri an easy win and a vital three Serie A points

Bari were no match for an efficient AC Milan side who bagged three important Serie A points to erase the recent memory of Champions League defeat.

Milan were hoping to use the game as a chance to recover from the recent loss to Manchester United in the Champions League. For Bari the task was simple, make the misery worse and bag a vital three points.

The first half was a frustrating one to watch. Milan had plenty of the ball but were not doing enough to convert this into a good lead. However, they stuck to their task and stretched the advantage in the second 45, never looking back.

Bari made the slightly better start as Barreto went racing down the wing in the fourth minute. Gattuso was having none of it and raced over to clear the danger and any early chance of a threat against Milan.

Milan struggled in the early moments to find their feet. Passes were going out of play and either too long or short. If Bari could get an early goal then it could help them when Milan improved later in the game.

Ambrosini missed a great chance just before the quarter of an hour mark when he fired over. Pato did well to beat the full back, progress along the by line and cut the ball back before it was sent into row z.

Bari were not to be outdone and a good little move nearly put them ahead. Meggiorini found a little space on the edge of the area but couldn’t get enough power behind his shot as a Milan defender came across to clear.

Pato stood menacingly over a free kick on the 20 minute mark but the Milan star hit a poor effort. The ball broke through the wall but lacked pace and swerve. The Bari goalkeeper went down and smothered the ball easily.

There were Bari shouts for a penalty on 30 minutes. Bonera seemed to be manhandled by Barreto during a corner but the referee waved away the protests and booked the home player for good measure.

Bonera missed a good chance to get in behind the Bari defence when he misread a Ronaldinho piece of genius. The Brazilian moved his feet too quickly to play the ball and Bonera just did not read it as the ball was quickly hoofed away from danger.

Milan had the best chance of the first half with only minutes remaining. Pirlo played a ball forward, which fell into the path of Borriello. The front man cracked his effort at goal only for a defender to sweep and clear it off the line as it was rolling in.

However, he did not have to wait long for another chance and he took it to put Milan 1-0 up. Ronaldinho played a world class pass to the striker who hit it on the volley first time and drilled it into the corner.

The second half started in much the same way as the first. Milan controlled the ball in the middle of the pitch and waited patiently for a chance to edge forwards and increase their lead.

Pato missed a great chance to put Milan 2-0 up in the 50th minute. He timed a run well and got onto a through ball before the goalkeeper. The front man poked the ball towards goal and it rolled just wide of the far post.

Bari kept going and Donati went close with an effort from all of 30 yards. He curled the ball towards the Milan goal forcing Abbiati to dive. The goalkeeper looked panicked but the ball went just wide.

Milan put together a superb passing move on the hour mark. At least six or seven players were involved before Ronaldinho sent over a cross, which was just behind Pato who put his head in hands immediately as the goal was gaping.

Barreto smacked a stunning free kick at the Milan goal as the game headed towards the final 20 minutes. The ball dipped slightly and forced Abbiati to tip it over. It was a clear sign that Bari were still in the game as Milan’s lead was only a single goal.

Milan really needed a second and it came as the game entered the final stages. Pato slotted in after Ronaldinho had a fizzing effort saved. Jankulovski did well to start the move and there seemed no way back for Bari from here.

The away team looked happy to sit on their two goal lead. A number of substitutions were made to soak up time as Milan played keep ball along the back line and across the midfield.
The comfort of Milan’s performance was finalised as Ronaldinho started to pull out all of the party tricks and skills.

However, the last few minutes saw Bari earn a penalty as Pato committed a striker's challenge in the box, but it was not their day and Abbiati made a fantastic stop to deny Barreto once again.

Jose Mourinho Angered At Penalty Not Awarded Against Napoli

Inter coach Jose Mourinho is furious that his side were not awarded a penalty against Napoli, as the referee did not see the incident.

The tactician also believed that the match deserved a winner, and not for it to finish in a scoreless draw.

"I don't know if it is the result that a match such as this deserved. Napoli played well in the first half, and we did better in the second," Mourinho told TMW post-match. "Despite this, they had a very good chance to score through [Fabio] Qualgiarella.

"After the match, I paid my compliments to the referee [Rosetti], as I liked the way that he handled the match, and some of the decisions he made.

"I work from the sidelines, and therefore am too far to see if a penalty should be given, which I am told was clearly there. I don't know why he didn't whistle for it.

"If we exclude this episode, he did very well. But, he has gotten several of these 'single' episodes wrong against us, and we don't know how many more he will get incorrect in the future," the coach added.

Juventus Star Diego: We’re All To Blame

Juventus' attacking midfielder Diego is adamant the Italian giants have what it takes to turn their season around after last night’s 1-1 draw away to Livorno left them without a win in Serie A in their last five outings.

Diego’s failure to make a big impact since his €25 million summer move from Werder Bremen has often been blamed for Juve’s poor displays in recent weeks, but the 24-year-old is adamant the club’s problems are widespread.


“We don’t seem capable of scoring goals and converting all the chances we create, but that’s what we have to do,” he told Mediaset Premium after the Armando Picchi clash.

“It’s true we struggled in the first half, but improved considerably after the interval. But we need a victory. If you don’t win it’s difficult and nothing changes, that’s the problem.

“Personally I don’t think I’m finding it more difficult in Italy, it’s an overall problem. I feel fine, but if we don’t win, things get more difficult. We must keep working hard.

“We can all do much better, including me. Our morale is still intact. We know what our qualities are and what we have to do to find a solution.”

Juve lie sixth in the standings and could find themselves six points behind the Champions League places if Napoli defeat Udinese this afternoon.

Juventus 1-1 Lazio

Juventus' new coach Alberto Zaccheroni was denied an opening victory by Lazio's Stefano Mauri as the Bianconeri had to settle for a 1-1 Serie A draw in Turin.

Alessandro Del Piero's second half penalty looked set to give the new gaffer a dream start, but Mauri turned in Mauro Zarate's cross to level things up 12 minutes from time.

Lazio started with Julio Cruz in attack, with Tommaso Rocchi consigned to the bench, whilst coach Zaccheroni chose not to err from former coach Ciro Ferrara's 4-3-1-2 system.

It was a predictably nervous start from the two sides, with Lazio needing to put distance between themselves and the drop zone, whilst the Bianconeri were hoping to start their new era with improved form. The only real opportunity of the opening 10 minutes fell to Alessandro Del Piero, who fired straight at Muslera.

Del Piero then had a further opportunity when Antonio Candreva found him in space close to the bye-line on the right of goal, but his bullet shot flew over the bar from a narrow angle. That was part of a wave of pressure from the hosts, as they penned Lazio back for much of the opening stages.

Del Piero almost turned provider for Momo Sissoko when he played the second pass of a neat one-two for the Malian, who was dispossessed just in time by Stefan Radu. Sissoko then came close again when Diego fired in a meaty effort which Muslera parried and the midfielder narrowly failed to beat Guglielmo Stendardo to the rebound.

Lazio made their first real half-chance after half an hour, but after Mobido Diakite forced a free-kick from Felipe Melo, Aleksandar Kolarov drove the set piece disastrously high and wide. Moments later Diakite went on a similar burst forward and was brought down once more by Melo, who was shown a yellow card for his troubles.

Juventus had a dangerous looking free-kick of their own on 38 minutes, which Diego swung over the glancing head of Fabio Cannavaro and into the arms of a thankful Muslera. But Lazio immediately broke upfield and made a chance of their own, as Kolarov cut the ball back for the left foot of Stefano Mauri, whose shot was heading for the far bottom corner until Alex Manninger intervened with a smart diving save.

The first half had been a real story of set pieces, and it was from a left wing corner that Candreva could have given Juve the lead on the stroke of half-time. The flag-kick was half cleared, dropping for the new recruit 25 yards from goal, but his right footed effort cleared the crossbar and the teams went in level.

Lazio came out with more purpose in the early moments of the second period, and Sissoko's name was taken by referee Saccani after he brought down Kolarov in the middle of a fine solo run through the centre.

But it wasn't long before Juve were back on the attack, and Antonio Candreva unleashed a swinging 20-yard effort towards Muslera's bottom corner, which the Uruguayan did well to get down to and make the save.

The home side then produced the best moment of the match, and it was a piece of individual magic from Diego. With seemingly nothing on 20 yards from goal, the Brazilian fired in a left foot shot with little backlift which cannoned off the outside of Muslera's near post, leaving Lazio to breathe a huge sigh of relief.

The Bianconeri soon managed to build up a spell of pressure, and Paolo De Ceglie stood up an excellent cross for the head of Sissoko eight yards from goal, but the Malian couldn't direct his effort on target under pressure.

The breakthrough came in the 69th minute when Candreva chipped in a clever cross, Amauri flicked on and Del Piero turned superbly. But as the skipper shaped up to shoot left-footed he was brushed by Diakite, and the referee saw the contact fit enough to reward the Bianconeri a penalty. Del Piero picked himself up and fired low to Muslera's left, sending the keeper the wrong way and giving Juventus the lead.

As the two coaches looked to make changes and the pace seemingly gone from the game, proceedings suddenly came alive once more as Lazio scored a shock equaliser.

Roberto Baronio's right wing free-kick was half cleared by Amauri, but Zarate was able to chip the ball back into the box, and Mauri beat Zdenek Grygera to the ball on the slide and managed to poke the ball past Alex Manninger's dive.

Mauri picked up a head wound in celebrating his goal and was replaced by Sebastiano Siviglia as a result, with coach Davide Ballardini seemingly bracing his side for an Alamo-style attack from the home side.

The siege came thick and fast from the home side, but they just couldn't force a clear goalscoring opportunity, and their efforts became more and more frantic as time ran out.

Michele Paolucci was introduced by Zaccheroni in place of Del Piero late on, but he was unable to help his new boss picked up the much sought after three points.
(goal.com)

Napoli Striker Ezequiel Lavezzi Wants To Return Against Inter

Napoli hitman Ezequiel Lavezzi may have signed to stay on at the Partenopei until 2015 a few weeks ago, but he is on the sidelines with a hamstring injury.

The Argentine, though, is setting his sights on a return to first-team action against league-leaders Inter, on February 14.


"My national team wants to see how I am progressing," 'Pocho' declared to Ole. "I will continue to receive treatment there and I want to make my return against Inter."

The Azzurri sit in fourth place, on 37 points, 12 points behind the Nerazzurri. They take on Genoa this weekend.

Juventus Make New Offer To Guus Hiddink - Report

Juventus have made a fresh offer to Guus Hiddink as they narrow down their search for a new coach to replace Ciro Ferrara should he be sacked.


Russian website Sports Life claims Juve have raised the stakes and they are now offering the coach €5 million per season in wages to take on the role at Vinovo. It represents a €1.5m increase compared to the offer they reportedly made two weeks ago. Back then, reports claimed Hiddink rejected the approach as he demanded nothing less than €7m.

The report goes on to suggest that Bianconeri directors have run out of patience with Ferrara and they want a quick-fix solution.

It is said figures at the Russian FA are open to the idea as they want to bring in a coach who will accept inferior wages to Hiddink. A source close to the Italian side is quoted as saying "the Hiddink option is the most realistic".

Speculative reports are conflicting, as reports being floated around in Italy suggest that the club are deliberating on whether to bring in someone for the short-term until June, or offer a two-year role.

Names being touted by Sky Sport Italia for the 24-month option are Dino Zoff, and Giovanni Trapattoni. As for the immediate solution, Hiddink is the only one being mentioned.