In the FIFA Club World Cup final, Barcelona, the reigning Champions League’s winner, demolished Santos, the Libertadores’ Champions, with a win (4-0) that surprised most. Messi dominated gameplay scoring 2 goals and the match seemed almost over by half time when Barcelona’s team (photo) was already up by 3 goals. This is Barcelona’s 2nd intercontinental win.
Serie A 14th round highlights: Udinese reached the lead in the standings after defeating Chievo (2-1) led by top scorer DiNatale (photo), and taking advantage of Juventus’ tie (1-1) Roma. Milan also was held to a tie at Bologna (2-2) and was joined in 3rd place by Lazio which came back from behind to win at Lecce (2-3) Further behind in the standings Inter collected a win over Fiorentina (2-0) as it tries to come back from behind in the standings.
Highlights of the 13th round of Serie A
Leaders: Juventus retained the lead defeating at home Cesena (2-0) led by Marchisio and Vidal but struggled quite a bit (In mid-week Juventus had also tied 3-3 at Napoli in an exciting match that was postponed last month). Conte’s Juventus will have to continue its winning pace however in order to retain the lead in the standings because Milan is becoming ever more dangerous after collecting yet another win at Genoa (0-2) led by Ibrahimovic (photo) and Nocerino. Udinese also remains at the top after clinching a win away from home (0-1) against Inter which is in deep crisis and close to the relegation zone.
Contenders: Napoli returned to victory defeating at home Lecce (4-2) led by the usual Cavani who scored 2 goals. Roma on the contrary crumbled in Firenze losing again to Fiorentina (3-0) led by Jovetic. In other matches among a string of ties, Cagliari won surprisingly at Catania (0-1) while Bologna returned to victory narrowly defeating Siena (1-0).
Results: Bologna – Siena 1-0; Catania – Cagliari 0-1; Chievo – Atalanta 0-0; Fiorentina – Roma 3-0; Genoa-Milan 0-2; Inter – Udinese 0-1; Juventus – Cesena 2-0; Lazio – Novara (on Monday 12/5); Napoli – Lecce 4-2;
Parma – Palermo 0-0.
Standings: Juventus 29; Milan, Udinese 27; Lazio 22; Napoli, Palermo 20; Cagliari, Catania, Roma 17; Fiorentina, Parma, Chievo 16; Genoa, Atalanta 15; Siena, Inter, Bologna 14; Novara 10; Cesena 9; Lecce 8. (Note: Genoa and Inter have to make up one match; Lazio – Novara will be played on Monday 12/5/2011).
Highlights of the 12th round of Serie A.
Leaders: Juventus took the lead of Serie A by defeating Lazio (0-1) at Roma with a goal scored by Pepe (photo) in an evenly fought match. The win for Conte’s Juventus confirmed it to be a key contender for the title this year. In 2nd place Udinese persisted with a convincing win over Roma led as usual by DiNatale while Milan easily defeated Chievo (4-0) with Ibrahimovic scoring two goals.
Contenders: Palermo moved up the standings with a key win over struggling Fiorentina (2-0) while Catania grabbed an important win at Lecce (0-1) in injury time. Inter also continued its bid to come back from behind in the standings with a win at Siena (0-1) clinched in injury time but it stills trails far behind the leaders. At the bottom of the standings Nova beat Parma (2-1) coming back from behind while Cesena defeated Genoa (2-0) with two goals scored by Mutu.
Results: Atalanta – Napoli 1-1; Cagliari – Bologna 1-1; Cesena – Genoa 2-0; Lazio – Juventus 0-1; Lecce-Catania 0-1; Milan – Chievo 4-0; Novara-Parma 2-1; Palermo – Fiorentina 2-0; Siena – Inter 0-1; Udinese-Roma 2-0.
Standings: Juventus 25; Udinese 24; Lazio 22; Milan 21; Palermo 19; Catania, Roma 17; Napoli 16; Genoa, Chievo, Parma 15; Siena, Atalanta, Cagliari, Inter 14; Fiorentina 13; Bologna 11; Novara 10; Cesena 9; Lecce 8.
In the 5th round of the UEFA Champions League group elimination stage, Inter settled for a tie (1-1) against Trabzonspor to ensure a spot in the next round of the competition. Milan also was certain of its qualifications despite being defeated at home by Barcelona (2-3) in a tough match that saw Milan coming up short in the end even after coming back from behind twice (Ibrahimovic and Boateng scoring) against last year’s champions. The most memorable match of the day Napoli’s win against the powerful Manchester City (2-1) with Cavani (photo) scoring both goals and giving Napoli a good chance to seal qualification in the next round.
Highlights of the 11th round of Serie A.
Leaders: Juventus regained the lead in the standings after a decisive win at home over Palermo (3-0) with goals scored by Pepe, Matri (photo) and Marchisio. The team coached by Conte dominated the match and took advantage of Lazio’s scoreless tie at Napoli to jump back into first place alongside Lazio. Behind the 2 leaders Udinese lost a match at Parma (2-1) while Milan was held to a scoreless tie by Fiorentina. Roma also moved up the standings with a narrow win over Lecce (2-1).
Contenders: In mid-table Genoa made progress with a last minutes win over Novara (1-0) while Chievo won surprisingly at Catania (1-2). Further behind Inter tried to continue making up lost ground with another win over Cagliari (2-1) while last placed Cesena unexpectedly won at Bologna (0-1) in an early battle to avoid relegation.
Results: Bologna – Cesena 0-1; Catania – Chievo 1-2; Fiorentina – Milan 0-0; Genoa – Novara 1-0; Inter – Cagliari 2-1; Juventus – Palermo 3-0; Napoli – Lazio 0-0; Parma – Udinese 2-1; Roma – Lecce 2-1; Siena – Atalanta 2-2.
Standings: Juventus, Lazio 22; Udinese, Milan 21; Roma 17; Palermo 16; Napoli, Genoa, Chievo, Parma 15; Siena, Catania 14; Atalanta (-6), Fiorentina, Cagliari 13; Inter 11; Bologna 10; Lecce 8; Novara 7; Cesena 6. (Juventus, Napoli, Genoa and Inter have played to 1 less match).
After clinching the qualifications to the final stage of the Euro cup competition to be plated in 2012, Italy played 2 friendlies to sharpen its gameplay. In the first match played on Nov. 11th in Poland, Italy performed well winning (0-2) with goals scored by an inspiring Balotelli (photo) and Pazzini with Buffon even saving a penalty. In the 2nd match played on Nov 15th in Roma, Italy struggled to put into practice its offensive gameplay and lost (0-1_ against Uruguay America’s current champions. The guest clinched an early lead and played a smart counter-attack closing spaces but Italy created several chances on goal with Balotellli, Balazaretti and Pepe among others. Coach Prandelli was satisfied of both performances but its new Italy will need to continue to build its character if it wants to succeed against more experienced and solid teams.
