Giornata 28 Review//Inter-Chelsea Preview

(http://www.soccerway.com/national/italy/serie-a/2009-2010/regular-season/tables/)

Crazy week in Serie A. 39 goals scored in all, which I have to assume is the most of the season. Inter got outplayed by Catania, Juve blew a 3-0 lead, and Roma failed to take advantage of Livorno. First off however, Italy's last shot this season at true European glory heads to Stamford Bridge tomorrow afternoon.

Inter @ Chelsea (2-1 agg) Tue 3:45 EST Replay on FSC at 6:00pm
That's correct, the genius minds over at Fox Sports will not be broadcasting this game live, instead will be aired at a delayed time of 6:00pm. The other option is paying $10 to watch online, as linked. Getting into the match, I do like Inter's chances. I think Mourinho will be x-factor in getting a win. However Chelsea is so good at home, nearly beating Barca in the second leg of the semi's last year. It should be a great match either way. Here's hoping for Inter to represent.
--My Prediction: 2-0 Chelsea (Chelsea advance 3-2 on agg.)

Match of the Week:
Inter @ Catania 1-3: Milito 54 (I), Lopez 74 (C), Mascara 82 pen (C), Martinez 90 (C)
A thoroughly deserved win by Catania that did not require the heavy assistance from the ref that they received. Inter were simply not up for it. Catania were consistently the better team throughout the full 90. Inter's domestic form is officially a concern.
(My Prediction: 1-0 Inter... I correctly noted that this would be tricky for Inter. Wish I had predicted a scoreline that reflected such.)

Fiorentina @ Napoli 3-1: Lavezzi 47 (N), Gilardino 60, 87 (F), Jovetic 94 (F)
I was able to watch the first half of this one which apparently the wrong half to watch as far as quality goes. Gilardino (not pronounced "Gee-lar-deen-yo" as many people confuse, as in Ronaldinho) is on a bit of a resurgence. Napoli as a whole is on the decline which is a bit unfortunate consider how well they started under Mazzarri.
(My Prediction: 1-2 Napoli... The game played out the way I expected, except I mixed up the teams.)

Cagliari @ Genoa 3-5: Dessena 16 (C), Zapater pen 36 (G), Palacio 39 (G), Conti 40 (C), Sculli 43 (G), Rossi 45 (G), Matri pen 54 (C), Milanetto 59 (G)
6 goals in the first half alone. A nice advertisement in itself for Serie A. I would love to catch a game sometime at the Luigi Ferraris and on a beautiful day like that, which such a game played, I would gladly pass up a trip to the San Siro to have been there. As for the game itself, Genoa showing the strength lately that they've failed to give consistently. Cagliari unfortunately is on a bit of a freefall.
(My Prediction: 2-2... It's difficult to predict goalfests such as this. Genoa at home however should have been expected to produce more than what I thought.)

Bari @ Lazio 2-0: Almiron 51 (B), Alvarez 64 (B)
Wow, Lazio. We know Bari's been good this season, but to drop another match at home while sitting in 17th place is relegation-esq.
(My Prediction: 1-0 Bari... Lazio is relegation-bound. What a scene that will be, especially if Roma can pull the scudetto out. Imagine that!!!!)

Roma @ Livorno 3-3: Lucarelli 9, 26, pen 73 (L), Perrotta 10 (R), Toni 19 (R), Pizarro 27 (R)
This was a proverbial sitter-miss for Roma. Not only had Inter lost, but Roma had the chance to go up 2 goals with a PK that was eventually blown. This all against #18 in the league. Great fight put out from Livorno though.
(My Prediction: 3-1 Roma... Didn't expect Livorno to put out the game they did. Kudos.)

Palermo @ Udinese 2-3: Floro Flores 43, 65 (U), Simplicio 51 (P), Asamoah 70 (U), Cavani 80 (P)
Palermo also chokes against a under-achieving Udinese. Lucky for Palermo, Juve choked even worse on the day, leaving them still in the 4th and final Champions League spot. Cavani's goal however should have counted for two.
(My Prediction: 3-1 Udinese... Palermo have been a bit inconsistent this season which I should have seen coming. Udinese have gotten their results as well as of late. Shame on me.)

Atalanta @ Parma 0-1: Bojinov 71 (P)
Parma is back on track. 7 points out of 6th place, they could pull a miracle out and get a Europa League spot if they keep it up.
(My Prediction: 1-1... Atalanta looking lowly. I expect them to be leap-frogged at the bottom by Siena after next week.)

Siena @ Juventus 3-3: Del Piero 3, 7 (J), Candreva 10 (J), Maccarone 16 (S), Ghezzal 46, pen 74 (S)
This, boys and girls, is why we play all 90 minutes. If you're going to concede 3 goals in a game, might as well do it in the first 10 minutes. Soccer is just too unpredictable of a game to turn off the TV after a 3-0 scoreline at 10'. Del Piero is right to have been as depressed as he was afterward.
(My Prediction: 1-2 Juventus... I know Juve have been getting results recently but Siena should be a considered a force to be reckoned with for the remainder of a the season.)

Sampdoria @ Bologna 1-1: Gastaldello 86 (S), Raggi 92 (B)
I apologize for being obsessed over the correlation between the exclusion of Antonio Cassano and the winning form of Sampdoria, but how this talent comes in and the team doesn't produce is beyond me. Finally back from a long layoff, Samp can only put up a 1-spot, good enough only for a draw.
(My Prediction: 2-2... Bologna one of the tougher teams in the lower half this season. Doing well as of late and expected them to stay neck and neck with Sampdoria.)

Chievo @ Milan 0-1: Seedorf 91 (M)
Tough break for Chievo. Definitely a "10" on the lucky-scale for Milan. Chievo denied a totally legit goal while the heroics of Clarence Seedorf were required to close the gap to just 1 point, which I cannot believe. Very sad to see Beckham's chances at the World Cup ended however his loss, in terms of the playing form of Milan, is a blessing in disguise. He has not done well and as he had said, didn't have a guarentee of making the England squad anyway. Just a shame to see it end like it did. As more Milan's season as a whole, without Nesta, I don't think their scudetto hopes have much in them. Favalli and Kaladze are sad replacements. Perhaps Oguchi Onyewu can recover soon enough, fill in, and make a name for himself. I'd love to see it.
(My Prediction: 2-0 Milan... A victory, but not how I expected. As I said, got very lucky with some help from the ref. Chievo we're hard done.)