Raware Posted June 2, 2012 Share Posted June 2, 2012 Wow, a lot has happened since I came in here last! Fantastic work, it certainly seems like that corner has been turned. Just the title now! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRL88 Posted June 2, 2012 Share Posted June 2, 2012 Brilliant work winning the Champions League fella. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 4, 2012 Author Share Posted June 4, 2012 Going to be very close in the league but your doing well in the cups.Best of luck against Bayern in the Champions League.Also good luck with Spain A very close league, only a point behind! And congrats on Spain Nice that you get the Euros right away. Close at the top, just a matter of taking advantage of any points Juventus drops Should be an exciting season if the top 4 keep winning. Good luck. Wow, a lot has happened since I came in here last! Fantastic work, it certainly seems like that corner has been turned. Just the title now! Brilliant work winning the Champions League fella. Sorry there's been nothing of late, been mostly either out and about, drunk or hungover since Thursday evening, and literally only played one more match. Though will get back on it a bit later today, especially with a few more things happening in the next week or so. Definitely want the title very badly, probably won't even mind going out to Bayern if we're on top at the end, since there's a far stronger focus on the league this time than normally, a reverse of last year, given we were after trophies (and I won the big one after all) and now we have a Serie A shaped space to fill. Having a home game with Juventus will help, though not so much if someone else becomes the main challenger (which happened last time) as pretty much all the remaining big games are away. Will have to see how things pan out but definitely feel we have a very strong shot. The one game played was beating Catania (pretty strong in their own right, though not quite challenger-level) 6-1 after having a player sent off after 15 minutes, not a bad display of our credentials. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 4, 2012 Author Share Posted June 4, 2012 How to blow a season in three games, by Delta's Milan, aged 5 3/4... Jan 2044 Milan 6-1 Catania (A) Catania was expected to be a very tough game when the league resumed. However Eweka alone had about 5 chances before we were awarded a penalty after just a few minutes, scored by Davalos. Clement got sent off about 15 minutes in, but Adriano extended the lead a few minutes later. They got one back, but Eweka made it 3-1 in the 22nd minute. He got his second in the 38th minute, and completed his hat-trick in the 48th. 20 minutes later he got his 4th of the match. Roma 2-1 Milan (A) Roma away would be far tougher. Finishing was very lacking as we were dominant in the first half, especially the first 25 minutes. Knapen finally scored after an hour. However by this time the game as far more even. It took just 5 minutes to equalize, but I was still shocked when their winner in the 74th minute, still we had definitely thrown the points away (unusual for the forwards to be the ones doing it though) so had no one to blame but ourselves. Milan 3-0 Verona (CI) Eweka and Davalos were suspended for the first Italian cup match, though as it was at home to Verona it was hardly critical. Wohlfarth gave us the lead in the 32nd minute, with Helm’s penalty making it 2-0 5 minutes later. Knapen gave us an eventual 3rd in the 74th minute. Milan 3-0 Padova (A) Knapen scored again to give us the lead in the 6th minute against Padova. Eweka added another on his return, in the 18th minute, and Knapen’s second in the 79th win gave us a comfortable win against the league’s bottom side. Parma 0-4 Milan (A) Going to Parma, they were no problem either. Eweka gave us the lead in the 28th minute. Sebastiao made it two in the 40th, and in the second half a pair of Knapen goals finished it off. Juventus 0-0 Milan (A) Juventus were just a point ahead of us in 1st, so if we beat them at home it would give us a massive boost. It was incredibly end to end. Admitedly there were phases where they were very much on top, but I took it as a positive sign of defensive resilience that we got a 0-0 draw, remaining just a point behind instead of 4. Inter 1-3 Milan (CI QF) We had Inter ‘away’ in the cup quarter-final. A poor first-half saw us go behind a few minutes before half-time. Puncheon in goal played even better than against Juventus, stopping it getting worse, and we were rewarded by an Adriano header, quickly followed by Helm giving us the lead. A second Helm goal sent us through in stoppage time, which was a relief as Terzi was getting his fitness back, but I knew there was no need to rush him back in. Siena 0-2 Milan (A) Eweka gave us a breakthrough in the 51st minute at Siena. Helm made it more comfortable in the 64th minute. League Table Pescara 2-2 Milan (CI SF Leg 1) We went to Pescara for the first leg of the cup semi-final. We pounded them in the first half, though there were shades of Roma as we failed to take the lead, but did snatch a goal before the break this time from Eweka. We seemed to lose our grip in the second half, as they equalized in the 57th minute, and took the lead a few minutes later, but Clement snatched a very late goal to level the tie, with two away goals for us, and we were in a strong position. Atalanta 0-1 Milan (A) Having come on as a sub, Terzi was back in the line-up in place of a suspended Eweka for the Atalanta trip, but even before his injury he was in a bit of a dry spell, and 10 goals (just 4 in the league) in 16 games was a relatively poor return for him, but while he very quickly lost the ‘untouchable when available’ status (which only applied to being dropped, even the keeper isn’t safe from being subbed off in my teams) it looked like he’d have for a while, 103 goals (72 in the league) in the past two full seasons still very much speaks for itself, I’d be mad not to use him when I can while he enjoys his peak (and he’s 23 now). Adriano gave us the lead just before the break, but we were far from comfortable. As the scores stood we’d overtake Juventus which lead to a massive facepalm when Helm got sent off in the 53rd minute. Thankfully Puncheon had proved himself to be an excellent keeper under pressure (not all the time, but no one is) and while it was hardly one-way traffic, he still was the clear man of the match as we moved into 1st. Milan 7-2 Chievo (A) Terzi and Eweka were reunited for the Chievo game. With just 1 point from the last to away games against them (though this was at home) we needed to avoid what were very avoidable and potentially costly dropped points in the future, and pay them back for their being a pain. Eweka gave us the lead in the 15th minute, followed by Terzi making a welcome return to the scoresheet (his first goal since Siena in September) a few minutes later. He had another within 10 minutes. He was set up by his strike partner for his hat-trick in the 52nd minute, then doubled his league tally for the season just 6 minutes later. They were being completely taken apart anyway, and though they got a goal after 70 minutes, Terzi got a 5th of the game in the 75th minute, and after 2 assists, Eweka got a second goal just a minute later. They soon got another goal but Eweka and Terzi had very much shown why as good as Helm and Knapen had shown themselves to be (bit inconsistent but both with roughly a goal a game, showing we had plenty of depth up front), those two were the kings of the San Siro. Bayern 0-1 Milan (CL KO) We certainly needed them to perform when we went to Bayern in the CL, and having won the three in a row just before us, on paper they were the toughest challenge around. That said, Man City vs Barcelona was on at the same time and I doubted either of those two would be any better. We had a couple of early chances, but afterwards Puncheon’s ability under pressure (probably just as important as the goals in keeping us in the hunt for the big prizes) very much came to the forefront. We were rewarded when a Terzi shot lead to an own-goal just 17 seconds after the break. They didn’t push us anywhere near as hard after that, though we still had chances to survive to get a great away leg win. A booking ruled Terzi out of the home leg, but we were in a good position regardless. Milan 3-1 Bologna (A) We had Bologna before things got much tougher. Adriano scored after 10 minutes. Wohlfarth scored a penalty in the 17th minute, again proving that there were plenty of goals in the team beyond our dynamic duo. A rare Puncheon slip-up gave them a stoppage-time goal (and allowed Alberti to get a run-out in the second half), but otherwise it was all about getting more, and we did at least get one from Adriano in the 72nd minute. Palermo 2-1 Milan (A) Going to Palermo would be a massive test, especially as Juventus had already played and won so even a draw would yield top spot to them. Palermo scored in the 14th minute, then got another in a poor first half for us, only alleviated by Sebastiao just before half-time. Apart from the Angolan, and Puncheon (predictably) we were mediocre or worse across the board, and a disallowed goal prevented it getting worse. League Table Mar 2044 Milan 2-3 Fiorentina (A) Fiorentina were also tough, the champions had hardly never looked like retaining their title, but had beaten us in our last 4 encounters, and could definitely be in the mix if they made it 5 in a row against us. It took just a couple of minutes to give us the lead, and a few more for a penalty to put us 2-0 down. We improved a bit, but eventually conceded a 3rd in the 56th minute. Eweka scored in the 76th minute, and Clement made it 3-2 with a minute left, but it was too late, took us ahead of us on head-to-head record, and Juventus coming from behind against Palermo took then 5 points clear. While we still had a couple of reasonably tough games left, things would get easier but we needed some point-dropping by Juventus. Milan 2-3 (3-3a) Bayern (CL KO) After two games that made the title a far longer shot, we needed to make amends against Bayern, though having a 1-0 win from the away leg eased the pressure. We looked far from safe from the start, and they eventually broke through in the 41st minute. Kunisch levelled the scores a minute into the second half, Helm getting another 5 minutes later. We looked good, but they scored in the 57th minute, and in added time they grabbed the goal to send them through on away goals, oh how quickly a season falls apart! The worst past was that after their second goal I had a pretty strong feeling they'd get the crucial goal. Sampdoria 2-0 Milan (A) We were just as lacklustre at Sampdoria, even with Terzi back in the side, and a pair of second half goals continued our slump, all this while Juventus were taking Fiorentina apart in Tuscany. Milan 3-0 Lazio (A) We mercifully improved against Lazio. Wohlfarth gave us the lead in the 22nd minute, followed by Adriano. Eweka broke a bit of a drought in the 64th minute, but we were still unimpressive. Inter 1-0 Milan (A) I was worried about the ‘away’ derby, and we managed to keep it pretty even, but both Terzi and Eweka were on very dry spells, Chievo being the only time they’d both shone in ages, and they snatched the game’s only goal just after half-time. From looking like being in a close and direct race to the title with Juventus, suddenly we were very much fighting for the top 4 at best. League Table I was all ready to write about how we had everything in place for a title soon, even if now this year, but simply a look at the losses column (or the past month) shows we're still too hit and miss. Indeed we've lost 5 of the last 6 games, tough games or not, we had been doing a lot better even in those sort of matches so no excuses. Could well win none of the major three trophies (the CWC as close as we'll get) as even though we probably won't blow Pescara as we did Bayern, either Juventus or Fiorentina will make for a very tough final. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerud Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 That top spot is very elusive! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackJCFC Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 Big risk of not making the champions league! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted June 5, 2012 Share Posted June 5, 2012 desperately unlucky there, hopefully you can at least keep your place in the CL spots and win the Cup Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 5, 2012 Author Share Posted June 5, 2012 That top spot is very elusive! I already knew that from experience before I arrived, though will make it more epic when we are on top. Big risk of not making the champions league! I felt most of the games were managable for that not to happen, in our financial position of making at least 1M a month and with 143M in the bank it would have been a crushing disappointment but not devastating. desperately unlucky there, hopefully you can at least keep your place in the CL spots and win the Cup We can do it for most of the season, but that's still not enough. Thankfully after that mess we reminded everyone why I thought we were good enough in the first place. Apr 2044 Milan 6-0 Torino (A) Torino was a great chance to kick back into life. Eweka scored in the 9th minute, with Wohlfarth adding another in the 18th. Clement made it 3-0 in the 37th minute. In the second half another Eweka goal in the 58th minute was followed 5 minutes later by Terzi, who got his own second goal in stoppage time. Pescara 1-6 Milan (A) We went to Pescara, just before our second cup encounter. Terzi scored in the first minute, and set Eweka up after 15. Eweka got another 5 minutes later and quickly finished a hat-trick. Terzi got his second goal in the 55th minute, and after they got a goal back, Eweka finished them off in the 75th minute. Milan 4-3 (aet) (6-5) Pescara (CI SF) We made far heavier work of the cup game than I expected. They took the lead in the 3rd minute, with Terzi equalizing in the 7th minute. A penalty restored their lead in the 27th minute, but we had most of the chances afterwards. However a Terzi equalizer in the 53rd minute was all we managed in normal time. Brighenti gave us the lead a few minutes into extra time, but they equalized in the 107th minute. However we managed to avert another away goals defeat with Terzi completing his hat-trick 5 minutes later. Milan 6-1 Juve Stabia (A) 300th Milan game! He was suspended for my 300th Milan game, at home to Juve Stabia. Pastor gave us the lead in the 5th minute, and even through Eweka was soon sent off, the French winger gave us another in the 20th minute. Helm ran rampant in the second half, with 4 goals (among one from them). Napoli 3-1 Milan (A) A trip to Napoli was the game I was worried about, and with good reason. They took the lead in the 15th minute, though we got a deserved equalizer from Pastor in the 58th minute, and were unlucky not to have the lead when they scored instead 10 minutes later, with a 3rd right at the end for good measure. League Table May 2044 Milan 2-0 Parma (A) Juventus had secured the title by the time we played Parma, but we’d ruined our season enough that I wasn’t too worried about that. Terzi was still on fire at least, scoring in the 15th minute, and the game only ever went one way, an eventual second also coming from Terzi around the hour mark. However that only took him to 24 for the season, compared to 52 and 50 in the past two. Juventus 2-0 Milan (CI Final) What we did have to worry about Juventus was that we faced them in the cup final. The defence didn’t really have collective off-days any more, but unfortunately they did here. We looked reasonably good for the first 25 minutes until they hit us with a pair of lucky goals. We went back on the offensive, and really deserved something but couldn’t even get a goal. What was annoying was that it was the first time they’d beaten us for two years. Catania 1-3 Milan (A) We went behind at Catania in the 17th minute, and I was worried it would cost us 2nd or 3rd, but Terzi was definitely showing that despite a couple of dry spells, he was still very much the player I knew he was, and within 20 minutes he had turned the game around with a brace to give us a 2-1 lead. He completed his hat-trick in the 62nd minute, and we looked good to get 2nd. Milan 4-0 Triestina (A) Triestina at home was an easy final match. Clement set us on our way in the 19th minute, Eweka (who actually already had more league goals than last year despite the perceived drop in form for him and Terzi, which was admittedly mostly the latter) in the 41st and 76th minutes, and Terzi’s 19th league goal at least made his season look decent with a couple of minutes left. Final League Table 2043 had gone so well, so far 2044 had been rather less impressive. Yet again we’d proved a distant second to the champions (the table only has us 4 points behind Juventus because they switched off once the title was secured), having a massive March switch-off, spoiling what had otherwise looked like a fantastic season. We still had all the ingredients to do it soon. I was about to mention consistency before March ruined that argument, but but we had the firepower, that Terzi’s 28 goals was only about half of either of the past two years says a lot about him, and Eweka keeping his end up (despite the two of them sharing a major dry spell) still meant they shared 69 goals between them, even though it was far off last year’s 98, but Helms 22 goals (in just 28 games) made that slack up. Even in defence, we conceded about 20% fewer goals in the league (41 as opposed to 51), which still wasn’t great, but was much better, as there was definite improvement in our ability to withstand plenty of pressure on a regular basis. The team still had many seasons together at their peak, and for the past couple of years, I’d only signed 2-3 players (which admittedly added up over a few years or more) each summer, and only if there was a genuinely excellent crop would that change, so we had a well established core of players that I knew was good enough. I would still like improvement at full-back. I knew when I joined that the competition would be tough enough that we may have to wait a while once we started challenging, and all it would take was a few more good results and opponents that weren’t all conquering. It could be next year, it could be 3-5 years, what mattered was that we were good enough and just had to wait for the dice to roll our way. Squad Stats Star man: Maybe not the statistically the best this season, but has gone from strength to strength since his debut just over a year ago. Any young forward shining while competing with the 'golden duo' of Eweka and Terzi has to be pretty special, and this kid is without a doubt... Helm Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRL88 Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 Solid effort in the league. Next year the title will be yours. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarman Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 Great finish to the season, next year will be yours! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackJCFC Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 Good end to the season in the end, shame about the blip earlier on, might have won the league otherwise. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
B.W.G Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 Good finish to the season,that blip cost you.Maybe next season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK22 Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 Recovered well to close the gap on Juve; can't imagine you're too far off being crowned champions now. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 Only 4 points behind them, can surely put this behind you and win the thing next year! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 6, 2012 Author Share Posted June 6, 2012 Solid effort in the league. Next year the title will be yours. Great finish to the season, next year will be yours! I hope you're right, the long it takes the more I'm really gunning for it. Good end to the season in the end, shame about the blip earlier on, might have won the league otherwise. Good finish to the season,that blip cost you.Maybe next season. Yep, apart from that we definitely showed what we could do. Recovered well to close the gap on Juve; can't imagine you're too far off being crowned champions now. Only 4 points behind them, can surely put this behind you and win the thing next year! It was more them switching off when it no longer mattered but we can definitely give them or anyone a tough battle next time. Euro 2044 - England I wasn’t too confident about a Euro triumph, aside from the expectation, as my first Spain games I’d made quite a few changes for my first squad (though it was hardly a revolution), which didn’t include my Milan player Olaizola, so probably wouldn’t quite be at our best. We had Austria, Norway and Portugal in our group so at least early on things shouldn’t be too hard. Spain 3-2 Norway (EC) Norway were the first game. It was a pretty slow start, we pushed them without any real sense of purpose. They headed in a goal after 20th minute, but the Everton forward Iglesias equalized just afterwards. We missed a penalty and had to wait until the 62nd minute to take the lead. Iglesias’ second goal made it pretty comfortable though they got a second goal to make it look closer. Spain 1-2 Portugal (EC) We next played Portugal, who had comfortably beaten Austria and had a few very strong players. They had a player send off in the 2nd minute, and when our star winger Munoz gave us the lead in the 14th minute we looked good. However the defence completely blew it and by the half-hour mark they were 2-1 up. We really ramped up the pressure, and had two penalty claims rejected in the last 5 minutes alone, but I was absolutely gobsmacked at failing to even get an equalizer. Spain 1-0 Austria (EC) The final group game was against Austria. Again we were very much underachieving, as we were very much on top throughout but only scored a Munoz penalty right at the end, though we’d have gone through in 2nd anyway. Spain 0-3 Italy (EC KO) We drew a very short straw in the knockout round, getting Italy. They didn’t have Terzi in the squad, 130 goals in 128 games in the past three seasons being clearly not good enough, though they did have Ambrosi at left-back. Three suspensions didn’t help our case. The first half was very end-to-end, but they gook the lead just before the break, though Terzi’s Serie A nemesis Baldelli, and he took us apart in the second half with a further pair of goals. Euro Group Euro Knockouts I feared something like that would happen, we actually played very well but failed to fully translate that into results, and Portugal was costly indeed (though if we took their path, there still would have been Germany in the quarters so matching the FA expectation of the semis would have been hard). I lived for another day, hopefully things would come together in the World Cup qualifiers and we would do better in 2 years time. Meanwhile a disappointing 2044 continued. Glad to get that out of the way, rather eager to get on with things at Milan, I have a title to win after all. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 6, 2012 Author Share Posted June 6, 2012 Not a lot to be said... Summer 2044 There’s no doubt what I’m after this year, or for any year from now on, though failure to win the league or CL wouldn’t be the end of the world. We can compete with anyone so it was about time we started showing it. Things were very quiet, I wanted two players, one for the problem full back position, another to probably make a better playmaker than Larsen or Olaizola (I was thinking of moving Richter back there when Wohlfarth was available on the left). However as they were both non-eu players from abroad I could only go for one, and picked the full-back, as that was far more essential, and I was able to get the other guy for next year. He was very solid and consistent (and with good technical ability) so had the potential to make a genuine difference. Bamba (From Heerenveen) Juventus, you're going down! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerud Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 Tough knockout in the Euros. Gear up for World Cup qualifiers next? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 BIG season now, will that elusive league title finally be yours?! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 7, 2012 Author Share Posted June 7, 2012 Tough knockout in the Euros. Gear up for World Cup qualifiers next? Far more excited about Milan right now, will go for the World Cup though as I wasn't going to leave after less than a year and 4 competitive games. BIG season now, will that elusive league title finally be yours?! It'll be great fun finding out, though away all day today so will have to wait to even get going. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRL88 Posted June 7, 2012 Share Posted June 7, 2012 Ouch. Tough break at the Euro's. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 8, 2012 Author Share Posted June 8, 2012 Ouch. Tough break at the Euro's. Yep, and been more Spain disappointment. Milan however... Aug 2044 Juventus 2-1 (aet) Milan (SC) We kicked things off against Juventus in the super cup. We were very much on the back foot, though held out well, with Puncheon’s strength under pressure very much in evident. They eventually scored in the 70th minute, but Terzi sent it into extra-time where we were far more lively, but they got a winner with 10 minutes left. Milan 5-0 Udinese (A) Udinese at home was the first league game, a pretty easy one but nevertheless we started as we meant to go on. Terzi and Eweka each scored in the first 20 minutes. Terzi had another disallowed in the 54th minute, though did get his second 5 minutes after Adriano (who had missed the Juve game as he was playing in the Olympics) headed in our third, and in the 85th minute, Sebastiao scored from open play. Going to Lazio would be tougher. Lazio 1-1 Milan (A) The first half was very dull, the second half only partly better. Pastor scored in the 78th minute but we were denied a win by a Davalos own-goal from a Lazio corner, earning himself a series of swearwords from the touchline. It didn’t help that Richter was out for a couple of months. At least we had a good CL draw, with Evian, Ajax, and Red Star, though even the latter had a very strong midfielder who I’d arranged to sign next year. Sept 2044 Faroe Islands 0-6 Spain (WCQ) Before we could make up for Lazio, I had Spain’s first World Cup qualifier, at the Faroe Islands. We were also with Wales, Northern Ireland, Romania and Israel, which didn’t look too hard, though maybe not a 100% record group. Rodriguez set us on our way in the 7th minute, but the Juventus forward Merino scored the only other goal in the first half. Things got a little better in the second half. Merino finished off a hat-trick (with a Jorge goal in between) within 15 minutes, and Rodriguez added the team’s 6th later on for a reasonably acceptable score. Milan 4-0 Genoa (A) Back in Italy, promoted Genoa provided another easy game. Eweka scored in the 2nd minute, Terzi followed in the 11th minute, Eweka made it 3-0 in the 28th minute and Terzi got his own second goal in stoppage time, as routine as you please. Evian 2-4 Milan (CL) We went to Evian in the first CL group game, and Terzi gave us the lead in the second minute, we had another goal disallowed midway through the half, but otherwise looked comfortable. They were more of a threat after both full-backs, Schmiedel and Bamba went off injured (Bamba being out for 5-6 months!), and equalized in the 53rd minute, but within 10 minutes, Adriano and a pair of Eweka goals put it beyond them, though they did get a second goal near the end and threatened to get at least another. Palermo 0-5 Milan (A) We next had to face two of the toughest games of the season, trips to Palermo and Juventus. There were a few tougher teams than the Sicilians but never the less I was amazed how easy it was. An Adriano shot was deflected in after 15 minutes, followed up by Eweka and Wohlfarth scoring before the half-hour mark. Another own-goal denied Wohlfarth his second just after the break, and Adriano got his name on the scoresheet in his own right with a few minutes left, as we proved that saying we’re flat-track bullies (though we’re inconsistent (though hardly poor) in the big games granted) is lazy punditry. Juventus 1-2 Milan (A) If only Juventus could be so easy, especially as we had yet another full-back injury (to Hoffman this time). Terzi gave us the lead in the 11th minute, and while it wasn’t as bad as in the Super Cup game, we were still second best for most of the half. Pastor amazingly gave us a second goal in the 39th minute, but it wasn’t over, and a Juventus goal a couple of minutes before the break was a strong warning. The second half was reasonably even, and not that hectic, but in a game as important as this it wasn’t any less nerve-wracking, but we got a very valuable win, and our best result for some time. Milan 6-1 Chievo (A) Chievo had been troublesome quite a bit in the past, but when they weren’t, they’d been hammered (for example we only had 1 point from our last two trips, but the one before was a 7-0 win), and this was such a game, despite early injuries to Adriano and Olaizola. Eweka got 2 goals in the first 20 minutes, and finished off a hat-trick in the 28th. They scored in the 41st but Terzi restored the 3-goal advantage before the break. Pastor made it 5-1 in the 49th minute, and Eweka got his 4th goal of the evening in the 57th. Mian 5-1 Ajax (CL) We got a little lucky against a strong Ajax side when they had a goal disallowed after 3 minutes. We took full advantage and ran rampant all over them. Terzi gave us a 14th minute lead, with Sebastiao extending it just before the break. Terzi scored again in the 55th minute, followed by Pastor (who had been the creative force in this game, as well as a few others already) 5 minutes later. Terzi missed a penalty but still completed his hat-trick in the 70th minute, shortly before they got a consolation. League Table Oct 2044 Fiorentina 3-3 Milan (A) We weren’t finished with the early tough trips, and a Fiorentina side who had beaten us in our last 5 encounters was arguably even tougher than Juventus. We were 3 points clear of them at the top but I still felt another defeat was potentially costly. It helped that their forward Baldelli (who boasted a consistent goalscoring record in the past few seasons even better than our golden duo of Terzi and Eweka, and had 10 goals in 5 league games this season, as well as scoring all three of Italy’s goals as they knocked my Spain side out of the Euros) was injured. His replacement scored after just a minute, but Terzi equalized a few minutes later. We looked good to get another, but a weak defence allowed them to retake the lead in the 28th minute. A penalty allowed Terzi to draw us level in the 39th minute. We were the better side in the second had, but they took the lead again in the 71st minute. Terzi popped up in the last minute to complete his hat-trick and rescue a draw that was almost as vital as a win. Spain 0-1 Northern Ireland (WCQ) Things didn’t improve with Spain however. It was 82 all over again as we let them through to take the lead in the 25th minute, scored by an Inter Milan player! After that poor finishing stopped us from getting anything as it was a shocking result. Israel 0-3 Spain (WCQ) We needed to win in Israel, and were far better, own-goals in the 28th and 58th minutes gave us a 2-0 lead but we’d easily deserved it, and Merino’s 72nd minute goal meant we got one of our own anyway. Milan 4-0 Cagliari (A) League action resumed against Cagliari, who had been surprise early pace-setters, but they were still a newly promoted team, and it showed. Larsen gave us the lead in the 3rd minute. Eweka scored in the 33rd, Terzi got a goal in the 50th, and Eweka got his second goal to finish it off in the 76th. Dead easy. Red Star 1-5 Milan (CL) Terzi gave us the lead in the 10th minute against Red Star in Belgrade. Eweka followed it up 6 minutes later. They got a goal back late in the half but Terzi’s penalty in the 50th minute made it 3-1, and it was also the 30th goal either he or Eweka has scored this season (17-13 in his favour). Another Terzi shot was deflected in for an own goal in the 62nd minute, and another penalty in the 69th finished off his hat-trick and our 5-1 win. Atalanta 2-2 Milan (A) A trip to Atalanta was tougher, and they took the lead in the 7th minute. An own-goal equalized it for us after 20 minutes, and we chased the lead which we eventually got from Larsen in the 57th minute. However like against Lazio, an own-goal a few minutes from time blew it, this time from Kunisch. Milan 4-2 Napoli (A) That allowed Napoli to go top ahead of our next encounter. They were outsiders for the title at best, but were still a very strong side who often caused us trouble, so I felt we needed to get a win. They were tough at first, even after Eweka gave us the lead in the 14th minute, it wasn’t until his second goal in the 40th that we started getting the upper hand. He finished off his hat-trick in the 53rd minute, just after having a goal disallowed. They got a goal back just afterwards, but Terzi joined in the goalscoring fun just afterwards. They got a second goal, but it was still yet another good result against a side looking like strong rivals, which took us back top and with some of the game’s we’ve had it’s definitely on merit. League Table So far so good, and if it hadn't been for Davalos and Kunisch's own-goals we'd be running away with it despite some of the tough games we've had (Inter are the only other top 7 side we haven't faced, though they're not far behind). We've dominated for long periods of a season but still not been consistent enough but this could be quite a season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerud Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 Looking great after 10 matches in! Hope this is the season for Milan dominance Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DazRTaylor Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 So close a few times, this is your year! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 8, 2012 Author Share Posted June 8, 2012 Looking great after 10 matches in! Hope this is the season for Milan dominance Its looking that way, though with a few draws it's only in the past few games that it's been comfortable at the top, plus a few of the hardest away games are done with, though those teams (and the remainder) won't be an easy ride, so it may well be a lot closer. Still that's something to worry about later, just enjoying being in a great position. So close a few times, this is your year! Yep, having been way behind Juventus and Fiorentina in the past couple of years, it's great to see the boot on the other foot. Great season so far. Nov 2044 Mian 5-2 Red Star (CL) Terzi gave us the lead at home to Red Star in the 3rd minute. However if we were expecting an easy win, we were wrong. They equalized in the 8th minute and looked like they might get another. Terzi restored the lead in the 59th minute, but an Ambrosi own-goal gave them another equalizer. Eweka put us back in control in the 59th minute, followed by Terzi’s 3rd and 4th goals of the match as we secured qualification, but credit where it’s due to Red Star for the fight they put up. Juve Stabia 0-3 Milan (A) We started slowly at Juve Stabia, but with Larsen being the creative star, Eweka managed to give us the upper hand, in contrast to Terzi’s major off-day, scoring in the 31st minute, then the 57th, and Larsen topped off his 2 assists with a very well deserved goal in the 76th minute. Milan 1-0 Roma (A) Roma had made a terrible start to the season but were recovering very strongly. We were on top but found it very hard to get a breakthrough, and there were even a few times where I thought they’d snatch a goal on the break. There was great relief all round when Pastor converted a free-kick in the 59th minute as we failed to finish them off otherwise. Sampdoria 0-2 Milan (A) We next had to go to a Sampdoria side who had beaten us during our miserable March. They were no threat this time, but finishing them off was a major problem. Helm coming on at half-time changed that. He gave us the breakthrough in the 62nd minute, and set Eweka up for another 15 minutes later. Milan 0-0 Inter (A) Eweka was suspended for the ‘home’ derby with Inter, which spared Terzi from being dropped after 3 poor games in a row (though he still had 23 goals in 18 games so while he would have otherwise have been dropped for Helm at this point we can cut him some slack). It was a dull game with the occasional wasted chance for each side (Helm showing why in the long-term sticking with Terzi is a better option), allowing Napoli to close back to 2 points, but keeping Inter in 3rd 4 points away. Milan 1-0 Evian (CL) We had far more dominance at Evian, but not much in the way of goals. I was hoping to keep up a 100% record, and at least be top (with Ajax close behind) so even though we had qualified, Helm’s 82nd minute goal was a great relief. Torino 0-3 Milan (A) A trip to Torino didn’t yield too many problems, though we hadn’t been that impressive in the past few games. Eweka scored in the 9th minute on his return. Helm extended it early in the second half, and Davalos clinched it with a 63rd minute penalty. League Table Dec 2044 Pescara 0-1 Milan (A) Pescara was a tricky away game. We had enough to take them down, though we only did from a Davalos penalty late in the first-half, and the second half was far from comfortable as they did plenty to earn an equalizer. Ajax 3-0 Milan (CL) The last CL group game was at Ajax, we probably had top spot wrapped up, but wanted to finish with a 6th win out of 6. It didn’t happen, as they scored in the 3rd minute, and soon got 2 more as we had a major off day, but managed to recover to avoid slipping behind them in the final table. Otherwise there were no real positives and I hoped we were just getting a bad day done with when we could afford it. Birmingham seemed a managable tie in the next round. We had beaten them in my first European campaign at Milan, and we were a far superior side now, though obviously they must be a bit better as well right now to be in the CL instead of the Europa. Final Group Table Milan 3-1 Catania (A) We finished the year with a pair of home games, starting with Catania, and after a draw between the only two sides near us, Napoli and Palermo, we had a chance to open up a bit more of a gap. It was a very even game until Eweka scored in the 28th minute. It was still nervy unti he extended the lead in the 53rd minute, and Terzi finally scored again in a good performance with his 200th Milan goal (in his 214th game, there’s a reason why the 24yr old is my king of the San Siro) just a few minutes later. They got a goal back in the 65th minute (ending our run of 6 clean sheets in the league) but never looked like getting another. Milan 4-1 Siena (A) Siena (who had my former Michlovce and Ghana starlet Abbey, for those who remember him) was the last game before Christmas. Davalos scored a penalty in the 13th minute, after which we started getting very comfortable. Terzi added another a couple of minutes later. They got a goal back in the 28th minute, but Eweka scored his 100th league goal for Milan in the 54th minute, and got another 11 minutes later, putting us 7 points clear. League Table A couple of those draws were very disappointing, but now we have a bit of a gap it's not so much of a worry. Still some way to go but can't argue with how we've done so far (except I sort of have in the last sentence), and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't thinking that we were probably going to win this time, even if we end up with a bit more of a fight later. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 9, 2012 Author Share Posted June 9, 2012 Jan 2045 Parma 1-3 Milan (A) We went to Parma in the new year, and Pastor really shone. He scored in the second minute, adding another in the 34th minute. Helm made it 3-0 10 minutes later and it we cruised to the win, despite their goal 15 minutes from time. Milan 4-0 Cagliari (CI) We were at home to Cagliari in the cup and easily cast them aside as well. Eweka scored in the 23rd minute, followed by Richter in the 44th. The second half saw Helm score in the 51st minute, and a Pastor shot led to a 62nd minute own-goal. Udinese 0-3 Milan (A) Going to Udinese, Eweka gave us the lead in the 3rd minute, and by the 19th he had a hat-trick. It was amazing that we didn’t get more as we’d well and truly wiped the floor with them, even with Pastor going off injured, and we extended our lead to 9 points. Milan 6-1 Lazio (A) A Hoffman mistake let Lazio score in the 7th minute, and they looked like they’d get another. The game turned drastically with Wohlfarth’s 35th minute equalizer. Within 5 minutes, a pair of Eweka goals put us comfortably 3-1 up. He completed his hat-trick in the 55th minute and late on Helm got a brace to finish off an incredible turnaround from the first half-hour. Milan 2-1 Inter (CI QF) We played Inter in the cup quarter-final. We were just about the better in a boring first half, and showed that when Clement scored in the 51st minute. They got an equalizer in the 79th minute but Wohlfarth scored in injury time to send us through. Genoa 0-10 Milan (A) A trip to bottom side Genoa was always going to be a goal-fest. Eweka set us on our way in the 12th minute, and the 19th. Adriano headed in our 3rd in the 25th minute. Terzi was back in the side after a brief injury over the Christmas break, and had been rested for a bit afterwards, and celebrated his return to the side by scoring in the 36th minute. Eweka got another pair of goals before the break. Terzi got his second in the 49th minute, followed by a 62nd minute own-goal and Schmiedel getting on the scoresheet in the 68th minute. Eweka wrapped gave us our 10th goal of the match with his 5th in the 76th minute, and sadly an 11th wasn’t forthcoming. That took Eweka to an amazing 32 league goals in just 21 games this season. League Table Feb 2045 Milan 0-2 Palermo (A) We had a few tough home games, starting with our challengers Palermo and Juventus, however being 9 and 11 points ahead of them respectively meant that while a couple of defeats would still be bad news, there was no pressure to actually beat them. Our 5-0 hammering of Palermo in Sicily had been their only defeat so far, and accounted for 5 of the 9 goals they’d conceded. Unfortunately they got us back for that. Davalos missed a penalty in the 9th minute, and we generally looked the better, but the exception to that was later in the first half where they got a pair of goals that we struggled to come back from, ending a run of 25 league games without defeat. Milan 4-3 Juventus (A) We were determined not to have a repeat against Juventus. Terzi set us on our way in the 2nd minute, with another 20 minutes later. They got a goal back just afterwards, but we were otherwise comfortably on top, and Eweka got a brace to make it 4-1 after 50 minutes. We did switch off later on. They got a second goal in the 68th minute, and pulled it back to 4-3 with 5 minutes left, resulting in a few very worried late substitutions, but we got the win we needed to complete a double over the soon-to-be-ex-champions. Milan 4-1 Fiorentina (A) That still left Fiorentina. The champions from a couple of years ago were down in 7th, but we’d only just snatched a point in our last encounter and had lost the previous 5 so I knew they were just as much a threat as any close challenger. However in that game they were without Baldelli, the one forward I truly feared (this from someone equipped with Eweka and Terzi, and even Helm), and he scored in the 5th minute. Things looked like they’d get worse, but like against Lazio, we very quickly turned it around. Eweka equalized in the 30th minute, and gave us the lead a few minutes later, but we still looked very fragile, and Puncheon was thankfully excellent in goal. Davalos made up for his Palermo miss by scoring a penalty in the 72nd minute, and Helm (for Terzi was injured for a few weeks) wrapped up a win that looked far more comfortable than it felt. Chievo 1-5 Milan (A) Unfortunately Chievo were their usual troublesome selves at the Bentegodi (where we only had 1 point from our previous two games), and they took the lead in the 11th minute. It took a little longer than usual to turn it around. Pastor equalized in the 42nd minute, and we took Chievo down in the second half. Sebastiao gave us the lead in the 55th minute, then Eweka roused himself from a poor game to score twice in the last 15 minutes, and Adriano even made it 5-1 in added time. A draw between Palermo and Juventus helped our league case, taking us to 8 points clear. Birmingham 1-3 Milan (CL KO) Our CL case resumed in Birmingham. We had an easy start. Eweka scored after just 30 seconds, and Helm made it 2-0 after 10 minutes. They got stronger after that, and got a goal back in the 68th minute, but soon an Eweka penalty wrapped up a 3-1 away leg win. Cagliari 0-6 Milan (A) Cagliari was another fruitful trip. Adriano gave us the lead in the 7th minute. Helm got another in the 16th, and a 19th minute Eweka penalty was the first of what eventually became a hat-trick for him, with an own-goal just before the last one, as we cast them aside 6-0. League Table Mar 2045 Milan 3-0 Atalanta (A) Eweka gave us the lead in the 8th minute against Atalanta, followed 20 minutes later by Adriano, a third goal was long coming and eventually came from Eweka (his 50th of the season and 43rd in the league) in the 75th minute. Napoli 1-5 Milan (A) Napoli was one of a few tough games left (there was also the ‘away’ Milan derby, having only drawn the first, and arguably Roma). They took the lead in the 15th minute, but we’d already come from behind to get big wins in tricky games three times already since the new year, and thanks to a pair of Richter goals before the half-hour mark, we were on our way to a 4th. However until near the end there were some heart-stopping moments as they came very close, and the rest of the goals came in the last 10 minutes, with 2 from Helm (the first being the club’s 100th league goal of the season) and Terzi finishing it off. Milan 2-0 (5-1) Birmingham (CL KO) We were very comfortable going into the home leg against Birmingham. We finished them off easily, the only surprise was that a strong all round performance only saw goals from Terzi and Eweka in the first 25 minutes. Feyenoord would be in the next round and I felt we had a very good chance of getting through that. Spain 4-0 Wales (WCQ) Spain rather inconveniently got in the way as we had a qualifier against Wales. It was very easy, helped by the fact that they went down to 10 men shortly after Merino’s opener. Munoz scored the resulting penalty, Navarro got a third just before half-time, and Sanchez completed the set of the front 4 getting on the scoresheet in the 72nd minute. The bad news was Davalos being out for 2 months after an injury during a Paraguay international, which at least gave Katsikas a chance to shine. Milan 4-0 Juve Stabia (A) Juve Stabia were tricky to break down, but Sebastiao broke through in the 24th minute. Eweka extended the lead after half an hour, and again just before the break, with Sebastiao wrapping things up in the 72nd minute. League Table Almost there. The consistency from ourselves and Palermo since the new year has been remarkable. Our defeat to them was the only time we dropped points, and their draw with Juve is the only time they have. There a very good reason I was worried that after losing to them and with more tough games coming up our lead might soon vanish. Thankfully it hasn't. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DazRTaylor Posted June 9, 2012 Share Posted June 9, 2012 17 points required for the title. 8 cpoints clear, 24 to play for. Go Milan! I will say, what a mean defence Palermo has. Only 11 conceded all season? And you put five past them! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 9, 2012 Author Share Posted June 9, 2012 17 points required for the title. 8 cpoints clear, 24 to play for. Go Milan! I will say, what a mean defence Palermo has. Only 11 conceded all season? And you put five past them! Yep, in front of their own fans no less. Apr 2045 Milan 5-0 Sampdoria (A) 1,300th career match! Sampdoria would be my 1,300th career match. Eweka scored in the 19th minute to celebrate. Bamba finally got his first goal (having been out injured for most of the season until recently), heading in a Richter corner in the 23rd minute. Sebastiao made it 3-0 in the 55th minute, then Richter scored a penalty in the 60th minute, finishing off a man of the match performance with a goal from open play in the 72nd minute. Best of all, Palermo were held by Siena. Milan 3-3 Feyenoord (CL QF) We played the home leg against Feyenoord. Early on it looked like we’d have it wrapped up, with Eweka and Sebastiao giving us a 2-0 lead after 15 minutes. Larsen’s own goal just after late them back in it, but Terzi’s penalty in the 24th minute restored the 2-goal advantage. Things changed after Eweka had a goal disallowed, they pulled it back to 3-3 in the second half, and we even needed a Puncheon penalty save to avoid defeat, but still had a mountain to climb in Rotterdam. Inter 2-5 Milan (A) We looked good early on ‘at’ Inter, but the same forward who scored Northern Ireland’s goal against my Spain side in the autumn gave them the lead in the 25th minute. I think he enjoys messing with me. However yet again we completely turned it around. Eweka equalized before the break, but it wasn’t until the 69th minute that Adriano gave us the lead. Eweka got another 4 minutes later, just before they got a second goal, but Richter and Terzi wrapped up a great day for the red side of Milan. Feyenoord 2-0 (5-3) (CL QF) The away leg against Feyenoord would be much more challenging, and we had to get a win, not an easy task in the away leg of a European knockout tie. Having been poor at Ajax earlier in the season, we had another bad trip to Holland. The first half was very one sided, and we failed to avoid going behind. They had a goal disallowed before they scored in the 21st minute, and again a few minutes later. We improved a little in the second half but failed to do anything to avoid going out. I had high hopes for the CL this year, but it wasn’t to be. Roma 5-0 Milan (A) Palermo had lost to Pescara just before we went to Roma. They scored a free-kick against the run of play in the 37th minute, and we just fell apart in the second half as they ran up a 5-0 win. Pescara 0-0 Milan (CI SF) We went to Pescara in the first leg of the cup semi-final, and were hampered by a winger shortage. Nothing happened in the first half, and we showed a little second half life but couldn’t snatch an advantage to take into the second leg. Milan 3-0 Torino (A) We had been a little slow of late, but perked up a little against Torino. Penalties from Katsikas and Richter gave us a 2-0 lead at the break, though Knapen had a goal disallowed early on. Adriano gave us one more with 15 minutes left. Catania 1-0 Milan (A) We went to Catania just needing to avoid defeat to clinch the title. We actually had it in the bag as after drawing with Napoli, the best Palermo would do was draw level with us, and head-to-head would make it ours. They took the lead after 25 minute, but we had been the better, and after pushing them so hard we thought we had a Wohlfarth equalizer with 15 minutes left only for it to be disallowed. It was a shock 1-0 defeat so we’d have to wait until the next game to make it official. May 2045 Milan 6-1 Pescara (A) We were at home to Pescara just before having the same fixture in the cup. As I mentioned before, head-to-head means we’ve mathematically won the league anyway, so just a point (or a single one dropped by Palermo) in the last three games would make it official. We were determined to clinch it in style, and after a lot of pressure, Richter broke through in the 22nd minute. Terzi got another 5 minutes later. Another Terzi goal came from a penalty in the 36th minute, and having been in Eweka’s shadow recently it was great to see him shine again and complete his hat-trick in the 41st minute, though it took him to 36 goals in as many games so he had still been excellent in his own right. They got a goal back in the 56th minute, but after they went a man down, an own-goal gave us another in the 72nd minute, and Sebastiao scored a few minutes from time to wrap up the title in style with a 6-1 win. Oh and it was a fan day as well. Now that gentlemen, is how we do that. Champions!!!! Milan 1-0 (1-0) Pescara (CL SF) The cup game was quieter, but we gradually got going, and Terzi gave us the lead at last in the 65th minute, which despite our best efforts was the only goal of the tie, taking us to the final where we’d play Napoli. Siena 2-1 Milan (A) We went to Siena in the penultimate league game. Terzi missed an early penalty at the start of a terrible game for him, and we were soon denied another. Much like Catania we were definitely the better but went behind in the 59th minute. An own-goal equalized but they got a winner with a few minutes left, as a fairly poor end to the season took the shine off things a little. Milan 6-0 Parma (A) The last league game was against Parma. It was a more fitting end than most of the past couple of months. Eweka scored in the first minute, then got his 50th league goal of the season (which had been a long time coming as before today he hadn’t scored since Inter!) in the 24th. Brighenti scored against his old club in the 44th minute. Terzi scored our 130th league goal of the season in the 60th minute, and Eweka finished a hat-trick (and 60th goal of the season) in the 73rd minute. Just to prove that he was just as good, Terzi wrapped up a 6-0 win with his second goal of the game, his 39th goal in as many games this season. Final League Table Milan 2-1 Napoli (CI Final) They were just 1 goal away from getting 100 between them for the season, which I hoped they’d achieve against Napoli in the cup final. Terzi managed to give us that milestone in the 40th minute after we’d been battering them in the first half. Sebastiao added a second in the 68th minute, and despite a late consolation, after we long should have had a 3rd, we completed a great double. Cup Final How’s that for a title-winning season! That we wobbled quite a bit late on (which also meant we didn’t do as well in the CL as we’d hoped) but still were streets ahead of anyone else says it all. It was the first title for Milan in 41 years, which is far too long in anyone’s book for a club like that, and while I felt we had a strong chance, I never thought it would be this good. We could and should have smashed the 100 point mark the way we were going until late on. Even in defence, while the last couple of months added quite a few goals conceded, we had gone down from 51 a couple of years ago, to 41 last season and 33 (having looked to be a lot better) this time. There was no letup in the attack either. I’ll probably be quoting Terzi and Eweka stats and milestones until the end of their careers, so I’ll spare everyone this time beyond thinking that 100 goals between them (in 91 combined appearances) is worth mentioning, having just missed out a couple of years ago (when they got 98). It’s only very occasionally that you get one forward that can boast consistent records like that, let alone two. Never mind Terzi being the king, Eweka had caught up in the past couple of years so together they were our ‘Consuls’, the two ‘Co-Presidents’ elected each year in the days of the Roman Republic, which doesn’t sound as good but fits better. The supporting cast were very strong as well. We got 171 goals this season, and won 42 out of 54 games in all competitions, in a season full of great wins, the 5-0 at Palermo probably being just the best of many. Even late on when we stuttered a lot, we chose the right games to shine, namely the Milan derby, the title-clincher, and wrapping up the season. We were a bit lucky in that we were well ahead of Palermo by the time they his serious form in the new year (which we were able to match), and I was genuinely a little worried after they beat us, as unless they’re very big or very small, points leads always seem a lot more fragile when you’re holding on to them then when you’re giving chase, and we did what we had to do just to stop them closing too much. Juventus didn’t have anywhere near as good a season as you’d expect, but at the end of the day we tore past everyone on merit, and I was especially happy at the number of times we battered good teams after going behind, champions performances throughout. It seemed odd that I’d been at Milan for 7 years now. A lot of the squad were now in the mid 20’s instead of being youngsters anymore, so this success probably isn’t too much of a surprise. I knew even when arriving at Milan how tough the top of Serie A was (at least usually), so wasn’t expecting a long run of titles, but I did want some more, and that goes for the CL as well. I’ve bonded so much with my Milan side that I intend to stay at least until most of this team have gone, which gives us plenty of time to get more glory that we definitely deserve, and who would bet against us? Squad Stats Star man: 51 league goals. What more needs to be said? Eweka Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DazRTaylor Posted June 9, 2012 Share Posted June 9, 2012 Eweka is just sick. 51 goals is outrageous! Any other nation and he would have 50 caps already. Congratulations on the Double! Champions League your focus next season? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackJCFC Posted June 9, 2012 Share Posted June 9, 2012 Congrats on the double, next season europe will be yours! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerud Posted June 9, 2012 Share Posted June 9, 2012 Wow, Eweka made me vomit just a little...in envy! But amazing season deltablue and nice Double About time for such a deserving manager Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarman Posted June 10, 2012 Share Posted June 10, 2012 Fantastic stuff with winning the league, now next season aim for the treble and AC Milan will be back to its glory days Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRL88 Posted June 10, 2012 Share Posted June 10, 2012 Brilliant double . Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
snootyjim Posted June 10, 2012 Share Posted June 10, 2012 Excellent work, congratulations! Champions League next season, surely?! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 10, 2012 Author Share Posted June 10, 2012 Eweka is just sick. 51 goals is outrageous! Any other nation and he would have 50 caps already.Congratulations on the Double! Champions League your focus next season? Wow, Eweka made me vomit just a little...in envy! But amazing season deltablue and nice Double About time for such a deserving manager Thanks Cerud, anyway I'm very lucky to have the front two I do. Terzi and Eweka having pretty much 'goal a game' ratios, and racking up the goals in the past 4 seasons, though that Eweka season (at least in the league, Terzi actully had a better spread of goals across all three competitions) was still something special. Congrats on the double, next season europe will be yours! Excellent work, congratulations! Champions League next season, surely?! Already got a CL title from a couple of years back otherwise I'd be as focussed on winning that now as I was on the league beforehand. Still now I do have the league title (but retaining/regaining it in future seasons will still be important) they'll have more even focus again, and I want at least one more CL before too long. Brilliant double . Fantastic stuff with winning the league, now next season aim for the treble and AC Milan will be back to its glory days That'll be tough, and if I do a League/CL double then not getting the cup won't be a big deal, but a treble that would be an epic season for sure, and something to go for, a 'sextuple' (with the admitedly relatively unimportant CWC, ESC, and Super cup) in a calender year even more so. June 2045 Spain 2-0 Romania (WCQ) Spain had a couple of qualifiers, starting at home to Romania who were a point ahead at the top of the group. Navarro gave us the lead after 15 minutes. We battered them throughout, and amazingly another Navarro goal in the 72nd minute was the only other goal as we went top of the group. Spain 6-0 Faroe Islands (WCQ) The other qualifier was against the Faroes. Navarro set us on our way in the 4th minute. Perez and Rodriguesz each scored before Navarro got his second in the 36th minute. He was the star in the absence of his suspended partner Merino, and he completed a hat-trick in the 65th minute, with a second Rodriguez goal wrapping up a game which unsurprisingly we completely dominated. Summer 2045 There was a bit more change this year. Some of the earlier signings had been sidelined (especially Kunisch with a few other already having been sold), and I took the opportunity to replace a few of them for players who were more promising, wouldn’t cause squad harmony issues, and would cost far less in wages. Otherwise they were good enough that I still would want to keep them around and use them then the opportunity arose. There was also a slightly odd reason. Bringing together a promising young squad in a short space of time as I had meant that I hardly had to worry about replacing aging players but when the time came that I would I’d have to do rather a lot of changes in a short space of time leading to a lot of disruption and a few weaker squad in the short term. That was a problem for 5-6 years time at least, but it didn’t hurt to start bringing in a few younger players so I’d have a good bunch in their prime when the current squad were declining. Nothing wrong with thinking ahead after all, even that far. Other departures for different reasons included Olaizola, as the ‘third wheel’ playmaker, though I did recoup the 15M I paid for him, and that Parma and Chievo were the Italian sides that bid for him showed that he wasn’t a big loss. Knapen also wanted first team status and wages, but while he was good enough, having both Terzi and Eweka as consistent ‘roughly a goal a game ratio’ forwards, and Helm shining whenever there was an opening, the Dutchman was very much at the back of the line, so I decided to cash in on him a bit, and like with the earlier sales, get in someone just as promising for less, who would accept being on the sidelines. Aside from having used up this year’s ‘non eu’’ signing last year (wanting two players and deciding to get the other guy on a transfer going through now, which was very risky), the newcomers were very much in that category, though the player I intended to get as the second defensive midfielder was already on loan so that would go through next year, something I hoped not to get into the habit of doing too much. As it turned out Katsikas returned to my first team plans (for now) anyway. Hathaway (from Everton) Kentsch (From Dortmund) Matthews (From Red Star) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 10, 2012 Author Share Posted June 10, 2012 Aug 2045 Milan 1-0 (aet) Napoli (SC) The season started against Napoli in the Super cup. We were overwhelmingly superior throughout, but it wasn’t a good day for fans of finishing. In the second half that looked more likely to punish us, but thankfully Puncheon in goal was doing rather better than both Eweka and Terzi up front. I’d have thrown Helm on long before but a) he was unfit after an injury and b) Being just the Super Cup I was prepared to give them much more patience than I would in remotely important game.. In extra time, Pastor finally game us a winner. Juve Stabia 0-2 Milan (A) Our title defence started at Juve Stabia. Unsurprisingly we were pretty dominant, but again the front two were having a slow start. Terzi scored at the start of the second half, but went off injured leaving Kentsch as our lone front man on his debut, and we were rather more subdued, though Richter gave us a second goal in stoppage time. A pretty tough CL draw threw up Man Utd, Galatasaray weren’t so bad, but Vojvodina seemed easy. Sept 2045 Milan 5-1 Roma (A) Thankfully we found our finishing boots in time to play Roma. Sebastiao scored after 5 minutes, followed by a first goal for the new Aussie midfielder, Matthews after half an hour. Richter made it 3-0 in the 39th minute, and Terzi gave us a 4th in the 53rd. They got a goal back but Eweka finally opened his account for the season in the 88th minute, as we almost fully avenged the 5-0 hammering they gave us in Rome in April. Northern Ireland 0-4 Spain (WCQ) Internationals resumed as we went to Belfast hoping to avenge the shock defeat from last season (which was also the only goal we conceded in the campaign so far). Navarro, who had starred in the past few games, was suspended, but we still ran riot. Perez headed in a goal in the 7th minute, followed by Sanchez a couple of minutes later. Merino made it 3-0 in the 48th minute, and 10 minutes later Sanchez scored the rebound of his own missed penalty to finish off a 4-0 win. Maybe this ‘Spain’ lark isn’t so bad after all. Spain 1-0 Israel (WCQ) That was followed by Israel, which was a very poor game in the first half, and only livened up by a second international goal from the 19yr old Badia (in his 4th appearance) in the 66th minute. Romania remained just 2 points behind, and we had a trip to Bucharest to come, though were easily guaranteed second at least. Milan 1-0 Palermo (A) Back in Milan, we had a great chance to get an early advantage over potential rival when we faced Palermo. We got them back for the defeat in the subsequent fixture last year. Eweka gave us a deserved lead in the 42nd minute. They were much more of a threat in the second half but we held firm and got the win. Vojvodina 1-1 Milan (CL) We went to Vojvodina in the first CL group game. Breaking them down proved very tricky and they snatched the lead at the beginning of the second half. An embarrassing result was partly averted by Terzi’s 68th minute equalizer, but it still was a day to forget, unless you were a Vojvodina fan. Napoli 0-3 Milan (A) A trip to Napoli was a tough early test, but we managed it very well. We found it tough to break through at first, but Eweka gave us a 33rd minute lead just as they threatened to get into the game, and Terzi made it 2-0 on the stroke of half-time. They came out very strongly in the second half, but a Sebastiao header extended the lead in the 65th minute and things were far more comfortable after that. That left us as the only side with a 100% record in the league. Milan 5-0 Cagliari (A) We expected to make it 5 from 5 against Cagliari. Katsikas headed in a corner in the 3rd minute. An own-goal came in the 8th minute, followed by a Terzi penalty in the 33rd. In the second half we got another own goal, and a late Eweka goal to wrap up a 5-0 win. League Table Oct 2045 Milan 4-0 Galatasaray (CL) We played Galatasaray, hoping to make amends for Vojvodina. It proved easy. Sebastiao scored in the 3rd minute, followed by Eweka converting a free kick in the 11th. Clement got a 3rd in the 24th minute, and Terzi a 4th in the 39th. We should have had a couple more in the second half. Milan 4-0 Catania (A) We continued our league march against Catania. Richter gave us the lead in the 7th minute, then Eweka took control. He got a pair of goals before half-time, and he completed his hat-trick in the 49th minute. Wales 1-2 Spain (WCQ) Spain had their last two qualifiers away. First was in Wales. For a long time it looked like one of those depressing games where we had nearly all the pressure, but they took the lead in the 37th minute. Badia came on as a sub and saved the day, equalizing in the 77th minute, and getting a last minute winner, which as Romania were held in Israel, secured qualification regardless of the result in Romania. Romania 0-1 Spain (WCQ) It was a reasonably interesting and balanced game, but was heading for 0-0 when a penalty in stoppage time allowed Badia to come to the rescue again. WCQ Table Carrarese 1-2 Milan (A) After the Vojvodina draw, a trip to Carrarese was an odd game to struggle. An own-goal gave us the lead in the 15th minute, followed by Terzi having a disallowed goal in the 28th minute. Having only conceded one goal in the league, Puncheon had a rare nightmare when he let them equalize before the break. We looked very shaky but what was important was that Richter’s 69th minute goal gave us the win. Milan 2-1 Man Utd (CL) We faced the first of a pair of CL games with Man Utd, who we had fond memories of beating in both legs in the semi finals when we won the CL a couple of years ago. We didn’t have such fond memories of this game. They scored in the first minute, and though Richter converted a free-kick after half an hour, they otherwise dominated. Our English keeper Puncheon was pretty much keeping us in the game single-handed, and he was rewarded by the sight of Eweka giving us a surprise win in the 79th minute, taking us top of the group, but it had been a hard ride. Milan 5-1 Lazio (A) Matthews gave us the lead in the 5th minute against Lazio. They equalized in the 12th minute, and were very dangerous for the rest of the half despite Terzi’s 18th minute goal restoring the lead. Things were much easier in the second half. Terzi completed a hat-trick by the 70th minute, and Eweka joined in the fun with 5 minutes left. League Table Great start to the season, which makes it even more baffling that the single game we haven't won was against Vojvodina off all teams, probably the weakest opponents. Still while the CL's proving a bit of a challenge, can't argue with how we've been defending our league title. Even with tougher games coming up (next month sees us face ever-troublesome Fiorentina, and the 'away' Milan derby, as well as going to Manchester in the CL) we're going to take some stopping at this rate. Edit: Now its 9 wins out of nine, but that game wasn't so much Milan vs Triestina as Terzi vs Eweka which the Italian won 5 goals to 4. Calling it a night ahead of a few of the tough games next. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerud Posted June 10, 2012 Share Posted June 10, 2012 Great way to begin defending the title! Looking good so far. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted June 10, 2012 Share Posted June 10, 2012 I've just caught up with this, absolutely brilliant domestic double! Finally champions! Also Eweka looks different class, true superstar with those goal figures/stats. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
criztano Posted June 11, 2012 Share Posted June 11, 2012 Wow from small european clubs to Milan, what a cracking career. How long do you plan to stay in Milan? Seeing it's been over 30 years since you first started, could we see who are the winners and runners up of the top leagues and european cups of the past decades? Cheers. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 11, 2012 Author Share Posted June 11, 2012 Great way to begin defending the title! Looking good so far. I've just caught up with this, absolutely brilliant domestic double! Finally champions! Also Eweka looks different class, true superstar with those goal figures/stats. Really delighted that we're going from strength to strength after our maiden title. Wow from small european clubs to Milan, what a cracking career. How long do you plan to stay in Milan? Seeing it's been over 30 years since you first started, could we see who are the winners and runners up of the top leagues and european cups of the past decades?Cheers. I'll certainly be at Milan for as long as I have my current side, we belong together, so that'll be 6-8 years at least. As for the past winners, I apologize for everyone for not mentioning that although my style is clearly geared towards presenting a great narrative, as that's how I experience the game, I'm happy to show people whatever they wish regarding competitions as teams, and will put that in my OP's from now on. Can only fit back to 2019 on a screenshot so filled in the gaps manually. England 2011: Winner: Tottenham, Runner up: Chelsea 2012: Winner: Man City, Runner up: Man Utd 2013: Winner: Chelsea, Runner up: Man City 2014: Winner: Man City, Runner up: Chelsea 2015: Winner: Man Utd ,Runner up: Man City 2016: Winner: Man City, Runner up: Tottenham 2017: Winner: Chelsea ,Runner up: Man Utd 2018: Winner: Chelsea ,Runner up: Arsenal 2019: Winner: Man City ,Runner up: Man Utd Premier league Champions Italy 2011: Winner: Inter ,Runner up: Napoli 2012: Winner: Inter ,Runner up: Napoli 2013: Winner: Inter ,Runner up: Napoli 2014: Winner: Roma ,Runner up: Juventus 2015: Winner: Napoli ,Runner up: Lazio 2016: Winner: Roma ,Runner up: Napoli 2017: Winner: Roma ,Runner up: Catania 2018: Winner: Catania ,Runner up: Roma 2019: Winner: Napoli ,Runner up: Palermo. Serie A Winners Spain 2011: Winner: Barcelona ,Runner up: R Madrid 2012: Winner: Barcelona ,Runner up: R Madrid 2013: Winner: Barcelona ,Runner up: R Madrid 2014: Winner: At Madrid ,Runner up: R Madrid 2015: Winner: Barcelona ,Runner up: At Madrid 2016: Winner: Barcelona ,Runner up: R Madrid 2017: Winner: At Madrid ,Runner up: Barcelona 2018: Winner: Barcelona ,Runner up: At Madrid 2019: Winner: At Madrid ,Runner up: R Madrid La Liga Winners France 2011: Winner: Auxerre ,Runner up: PSG 2012: Winner: Monaco ,Runner up: Lyon 2013: Winner: Lyon ,Runner up: PSG 2014: Winner: Lyon ,Runner up: Auxerre 2015: Winner: Lyon ,Runner up: Marseille 2016: Winner: Lyon ,Runner up: PSG 2017: Winner: Monaco ,Runner up: Lyon 2018: Winner: Lyon ,Runner up: Monaco 2019: Winner: Lyon ,Runner up: Marseille Ligue Un Winners Germany 2011: Winner: Bayern ,Runner up: Schalke 2012: Winner: Hoffenheim ,Runner up: Dortmund 2013: Winner: Bayern ,Runner up: Schalke 2014: Winner: Hoffenheim ,Runner up: Leverkusen 2015: Winner: Bayern ,Runner up: Leverkusen 2016: Winner: Schalke ,Runner up: Bremen 2017: Winner: Bayern ,Runner up: Hoffenheim 2018: Winner: Bayern ,Runner up: Hoffenheim 2019: Winner: Bayern ,Runner up: Bremen Bundesliga Winners Champions League 2011: Winner: Bayern ,Runner up: Tottenham 2012: Winner: Barcelona ,Runner up: Inter 2013: Winner: Chelsea ,Runner up: Man Utd 2014: Winner: Chelsea ,Runner up: R Madrid 2015: Winner: At Madrid ,Runner up: Man City 2016: Winner: Bayern, Runner up: Napoli 2017: Winner: Man City ,Runner up: Chelsea 2018: Winner: Man Utd ,Runner up: At Madrid 2019: Winner: At Madrid ,Runner up: Man City Champions League Winners Europa League 2011: Winner: At Madrid ,Runner up: Juventus 2012: Winner: Man Utd, Runner up: Spartak Moscow 2013: Winner: Bayern ,Runner up: Tottenham 2014: Winner: Leverkusen ,Runner up: Fiorentina 2015: Winner: Schalke ,Runner up: Inter 2016: Winner: Inter ,Runner up: Tottenham 2017: Winner: Schalke ,Runner up: Hoffenheim 2018: Winner: Tottenham ,Runner up: Monaco 2019: Winner: Dortmund ,Runner up: Milan Europa League Winners World Cup Winners Europa League Winners Phew, how do you guys do this on a regular basis? Hope this'll do. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 11, 2012 Author Share Posted June 11, 2012 Nov 2045 Milan 9-0 Triestina (A) Triestina were never going to be an obstacle our 100% league record, and Eweka and Terzi decided to have a party. Eweka got things started in the 5th minute, then Terzi got a hat-trick before the German got his second in the 25th minute. Terzi got his 4th in the 38th minute, but Eweka got a pair of second half goals to draw level with him in the 68th minute. However Terzi won their little match 5-4 with a 71st minute goal to round off our 9th league win our of 9 with a 9-0 win. Man Utd 2-2 Milan (CL) We went to Man Utd in the critical CL group game, needing to get a draw to stay ahead of them. We looked comfortable in the first half an hour, but they hit us with a goal in the 33rd minute, and another 20 minutes later. Sebsatiao gave us a chance when getting a goal back in the 65th minute, and he snatched that vital point in the 84th minute. Inter 0-0 Milan (A) We dropped points in the league for the first time ‘away’ to Inter. Both sides had their chances, but sitting pretty as we were at the top of the league I was happy to avoid defeat. Milan 6-1 Fiorentina (A) Fiorentina had been a team to fear in recent years, but not this time. Clement scored in the 17th minute, followed by Eweka in the 23rd minute. Richter made it 3-0 in the 36th minute, and just before half-time, Eweka got another. A penalty allowed Eweka to complete a hat-trick in the 53rd minute, and Clement wrapped up our scoring on the hour mark, before they got a very late consolation, such as it was. Siena 0-1 Milan (A) My former Michalovce/Ghana starlet Abbey did us a huge favour by bundling a corner past his own keeper in the 3rd minute at Siena. We easily deserved a few goals of our own, but there were a few points in the second half where we had to be careful not to concede an equalizer. It was a far stronger showing then it looked. Milan 3-1 Vojvodina (CL) We hoped to avenge the surprise draw at Vojvodina when they came to the San Siro. Richter set us on our way in the 15th minute, but after a lot of pushing for more, a Schmeidel own-goal in the 58th minute levelled the scores. We besieged them in search of the win, Terzi having a goal disallowed in the 66th minute, but a few minutes later Eweka got on the end of a Richter free-kick to thankfully make it 2-1, and Richter himself got a second goal in the 78th minute, securing qualification but we’d have to beat Galatasaray in Istanbul to be sure of finishing top. League Table Dec 2045 Milan 5-1 Chievo (A) Chievo had started the season as strongly as we had, and even now were 4th. After a lot of pushing, Clement gave us the lead in the 25th minute. A Terzi penalty extended the lead in the 37th minute, and Clement scored another before the break. Sebastiao scored in the 62nd minute, and after they got a goal back, Eweka rounded off a 5-1 win in stoppage time. Juventus 1-1 Milan (A) Next was one of the critical games of the season, at Juventus. They had won 10 of the last 11 games to keep relatively close to us, and while 3 points ahead with a game in hand looked pretty good, it was far from comfortable, and if they kept up their form and we wobbled even slightly then we’d have a fight on our hands. The game was as open as you’d expect, but we gradually gained the upper hand, including a couple of penalty claims turned down. Brighenti gave us the lead after an hour, but they equalized immediately. On balance we had the better chance to win, but like with Inter, keeping them at bay with a draw (especially in the away game) was the important thing. Pescara 2-0 Milan (A) Unfortunately we couldn’t escape a bad game, and it came at Pescara. We perhaps should have had the lead by the time they scored in the 28th minute. I wasn’t too worried but they got another 8 minutes later, and we failed to make much headway. Juventus were now level but we did have that game in hand. Galatasaray 1-2 Milan (CL) We went to Galatasaray in the last CL group match. A bizarre own-goal gave us a 10th minute lead. We were going through a slightly slow patch and didn’t impress, and they equalized in the 66th minute. It looked like we’d have to settle for a point but Terzi gave us the win and top spot in the group in the 79th minute. That said we had some hairy moments late on. The draw for the next round gave us Lyon, who we’d beaten in the final a while back. CL Group Table Milan 0-0 Atalanta (A) We rounded off 2045, which had been a great year, with two league games I expected to win comfortably. The first was at home to Atalanta. The finishing badly let us down, though their keeper was on excellent form as well, what should have been a win by at least a few goals turned into a 0-0 draw, though Palermo beating Juventus meant moved a point ahead anyway. Bologna 0-5 Milan (A) We would finally use up our long-running game in hand at Bologna. I was worried after Clement had an 18th minute goal disallowed that this just wouldn’t be our month, but in retrospect things were aways going to be alright against the bottom club. Terzi gave us the lead in the 25th minute, followed by Eweka in the 32nd minute. Even Ambrosi scored, the full-back’s first goal in his 9 years (8 as a first-teamer) at the club. An own-goal made it 4-0 in the second half, and Eweka wrapped up the win with 5 minutes left. League Table The disappointing Pescara and Atalanta results mean we're not as comfortable as we should be, but 4 points clear (which doesn't seem like that much when you're trying to hold onto it) isn't too bad, especially with Juve (and Napoli and Inter) at home in our favour in the second half of the season, so we're still looking pretty good and I reckon we'll pull through, but it's far from over yet. Also seems odd that we've conceded the least for a change. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerud Posted June 11, 2012 Share Posted June 11, 2012 4 points clear is still 4 points clear. And almost halfway through the season, that's pretty good! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cswalk08 Posted June 11, 2012 Share Posted June 11, 2012 This could be your year! Keep it up! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarman Posted June 12, 2012 Share Posted June 12, 2012 Top of the league at the end of December is always a great sign Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 12, 2012 Author Share Posted June 12, 2012 4 points clear is still 4 points clear. And almost halfway through the season, that's pretty good! Top of the league at the end of December is always a great sign This could be your year! Keep it up! True, I do tend to go for being a bit cautious, and if Juve keep up their consistency it won't take that much to lose it, with Pescara/Atalanta being warning sides that we won't beat the non-challengers every time but deep inside I am far more confident that we'll triumph again, and even if we don't get the cup/CL, retaining the title is something I'd still be very happy with especially in the manner we've (mostly) been doing it so far. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
B.W.G Posted June 12, 2012 Share Posted June 12, 2012 Brilliant season so far,hope you can keep that form up. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRL88 Posted June 13, 2012 Share Posted June 13, 2012 Nice start . Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 14, 2012 Author Share Posted June 14, 2012 Brilliant season so far,hope you can keep that form up. Nice start . The league's all but finished now, let see what I can add to it. Jan 2046 Udinese 1-2 Milan (A) We returned to action at Udinese, and it wasn’t very impressive. Katsikas’ 24th minute goal came amidst a sorts of wasted chances, and when Hoffman scored an own-goal in the 57th minute things got very worrying. Eweka had a winner disallowed, but thankfully Helm got one just in time. Milan 4-0 Parma (A) It took time to get going against Parma, though we were fine in the end. Sebastiao scored in the 48th minute, and Larsen (the quality Danish attacking mid that Christian Eriksen wishes he was) got another. Larsen got his second goal 20 minutes later before Eweka got a late 4th. Milan 4-0 Sampdoria (CI) Clement’s penalty gave us the lead in the cup against Sampdoria after 25 minutes. Eweka got a pair of goals before half–time, and completed a hat-trick in the 84th minute. Milan 5-1 Juve Stabia (A) Terzi gave us the lead in the 7th minute against Juve Stabia. They equalized after 15 minutes but Eweka got a pair of goals in the 20th and 45th minutes. Terzi got his own second goal in the 47th minute, and competed a hat-trick against his old club in the 66th minute. Juventus lost to Fiorentina to take us 7 points clear, and as we had a couple of difficult away games next I was glad to have that margin. Roma 0-3 Milan (A) The first was at Roma and that was surprisingly easy. Eweka scored his 200th Milan goal (though Terzi was still a bit ahead on 236) in the 2nd minute. A second goal was a while coming before Clement got it in the 36th minute. Eweka got Milan goal number 201 in the 71st minute, and Terzi deserved to join him on the scoresheet but had a late goal disallowed. On the plus side, Juventus lost again, at Siena, also losing 2nd to Inter who were still 9 points behind anyway. Palermo 3-0 Milan (A) Things didn’t go so well at Palermo. They scored after 10 minutes, and we never really looked like getting anything after that. They got a very quick second, and followed it up with a 3rd in the 38th minute. However we were still 9 points clear (of Inter, Juventus and Napoli together) as opposed to 4 in the new-year. As mentioned before we have home games left with all three which we’re unlikely to lose so we looked in an excellent position, indeed Napoli was the next league game. Milan 2-1 Palermo (CI) We faced Palermo again in the cup quarter-finals. The only real event in the first half was Brighenti headed in a Richter corner after half an hour, having come on for an injured Sebastiao just before. The second half was more open. We had the upper hand earlier on, but they started pushing and equalized in the 76th minute. 5 minutes later an own-goal sent us through though. League Table Feb 2046 Milan 2-1 Napoli (A) Playing title-rivals (insofar as we had any right now) Napoli was comfortable. Eweka scored in the 12th minute, and while there were nerves when Brighenti own-goaled, but Terzi restored the lead in the 28th minute, and we were reasonably well on top afterwards. Milan 2-0 Catania (CI SF) We played Catania in the home leg of the cup semis, and they weren’t much of a threat. Eweka got on the end of a Matthews assist after half an hour, and the two combined again in the 62nd. Eweka picked up a booking that meant he’d miss the away leg but I wasn’t worried. Cagliari 1-3 Milan(A) At Cagliari in the league, Eweka scored in the 7th minute, and again 10 minutes later. They got a goal back in the 48th minute but Eweka finished off his hat-trick in the 55th minute as quickly ended their chances of spoiling our day. It was also one of those games where Terzi played very well but didn’t score, a sign of the Eweka-Terzi relationship being more than just about both of them being able to deliver goals, which I saw from very early on when I put them together, though for a while it was the other way around. Meanwhile Juventus were held by Atalanta, taking our lead up to 11 points. This wasn’t even a challenge! Catania 0-2 Milan (A) We went to Catania in the league, and found them a harder nut to crack than in the cup game. We had the chances, but it took over an hour for Clement to give us the lead. There wasn’t much trouble after that, in fact there hadn’t been much before, but it was made safe by Eweka’s last minute goal. Interestingly it was Inter’s turn to be held at home by Atalanta, just after Juventus, and we had suffered the same in December. It appeared to something the Bergamo side (who were 12th) specialized in. Milan 6-0 Bologna (A) Bologna were never going to be difficult. Terzi scored in the 7th minute, followed a few minutes later by Eweka. Terzi got another after half an hour, with Eweka getting his own second in the 67th minute. We had a late own-goal in our favour, and Clement finished off a 6-0 win in the 86th minute. Lyon 2-4 Milan (CL KO) Far tougher would be going to Lyon in the CL. Eweka had scored twice when we beat them in the final a few years ago, and he gave us the lead in the 10th minute. We looked good for the first half-hour, but they equalized in the 28th minute, and put us under great pressure, taking the lead on the stroke of half-time. Adriano equalized in the 51st minute, and suddenly everyone perked up again, especially Eweka who gave us a commanding lead in the tie with a goal in the 59th minute, and another right at the end. League Table Mar 2046 Milan 6-1 Carrarese (A) Carrarese was always going to be another strong win. Adriano took advantage of a goalkeeping error to give us a 18th minute lead. They equalized in the 27th minute but it was obvious that didn’t last. Eweka made sure it only lasted 5 minutes, getting the first of what eventually became a hat-trick, alongside a 40th minute Clement penalty, and Helm celebrating the fact that I’d decided to use him and Terzi (whose overall goal ratio was down to 23 in37, but still had 20 in 26 in the league) a bit more interchangeably from now on, (Instead of the Italian keeping his near-guaranteed starter status that admittedly his Milan record had earned otherwise) as he was potentially as good if not better. Triestina 0-6 Milan (A) Triestina were another weak side, even away we took them down as if they weren’t even there. Eweka scored in the 2nd minute, which would never be his only goal of the match. Richter got in the second on the 11th minute, before Eweka got another in the 27th minute, Helm getting the 4th 9 minutes later. At the start of the second half, Eweka finished his hat-trick, and Pastor broke the German monopoly over the scoresheet with a couple of minutes left. Milan 1-1 Juventus (A) We faced Juventus, who were now 13 points behind us, 1 behind Napoli who were now 2nd. Even defeat wouldn’t put us under any pressure as at worst it would leave us 9 points ahead with that many games left, even if we might not be able to extend it with a win. The first half was very poor, and saw us go down in the 37th minute. We rallied in the second half, despite Eweka being suspended and managed to equalize from a Terzi penalty in the 67th minute, which was a reasonable result. Milan 4-1 (8-3) Lyon (CL KO) 400th Milan game! The home leg against Lyon was my 400th Milan match, and I was worried they’d spoil the party when they scored in the 1st minute. However Eweka came to the rescue with a brace by the 20th minute. Richter had a goal disallowed 5 minute later, but we still got a big win in the second half thanks to a Terzi penalty and Eweka’s 50th goal of the season. Atletico Madrid would be our Quarter-final opponents. Lazio 2-5 Milan (A) We were going very well for a while at Lazio. Clement gave us the lead in the 5th minute, and set up Terzi for 2-0 10 minutes later. However they got a goal back in the 28th minute, and equalized just after the break. Terzi took just a few minutes to restore our lead, but they pushed very hard for most of the second half. Late on Terzi completed his hat-trick, and Eweka scored in stoppage time to make it look deceptively comfortable (then get sent off). Fiorentina 6-4 Milan (A) I didn’t like being without Eweka (or Helm who had the flu) for my least favourite game of the season, Fiorentina away. While we no longer lost to them every time we played, I had only won once in the league in Florence, and had lost 3 of the last 4. Unfortunately they kept up their tradition of being Kryptonite to our defence. They scored in the 19th minute, but Terzi and Kentsch made it 2-1 to us within the next 20 minutes. They immediately equalized and went 3-2 up just before the break. Hoffman gave us a short-lived equalizer in the 52nd minute, so did Pastor 20 minutes later, but as well as getting a 5th goal in the 75th minute, they got a 6th near the end. I hate Fiorentina. Epic game though, and at the end of the day, they simply remained 9th while we were on the verge of another easy title win. League Table Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerud Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Congrats on your 400th match with Milan! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cswalk08 Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 8 points up with 7 games to go. You got this! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted June 14, 2012 Author Share Posted June 14, 2012 Congrats on your 400th match with Milan! 8 points up with 7 games to go. You got this! Thanks guys. Tied up the league, which isn't much of a spoiler, but great end to the season in prospect. Just had an utterly epic CL semi, and got Inter in both the CL and Italian cup final! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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