Le Grande Vittoria

It came only four days later, but for Inter Milan fans, Sunday’s Serie A title triumph with a 2-1 win away to Siena and Roma’s 2-1 away loss to Atalanta felt like an eternity in the making. After Inter blew a chance to wrap up the title with a 3-1 loss on Wednesday at home to second-place Roma, Sunday’s title victory looked more uncertain. The Nerazzurri hadn’t won since the beginning of the month with a 2-0 win at home to Parma, conceding seven points in the standings to a Roma team that refused to give up. In the end, Roma’s deficit was too much to make up, as on April 1 they stood 20 points behind and although they narrowed the gap to 13, the mountain proved too hard to climb.

Watching the game, no one would have guessed that Inter would have come out on top. Siena were done in more by their own atrocious passing and finishing abilities, as for most of the game Inter failed to find much rhythm. Both of their goals were scored by Marco Materazzi, the flamboyant defender better known as the head-butt victim from Zinedine Zidane at last year’s World Cup, one from a scrambled corner kick and the other from the penalty spot. There may be those who would say that Siena goalkeeper Alex Manninger’s foul on Julio Ricardo Cruz- a body-check, really- might not have been really a foul, but from the referee’s viewpoint it certainly looked like a hit Don Cherry would be proud of. However, unlike Materazzi’s first-half strike on eighteen minutes that Siena (and ex-Lazio) defender Paolo Negro cancelled out three minutes later, Siena could not find a reply despite creating ample chances. The Inter defence were not at their best and neither was their midfield, but the talent gulf was too much for Siena to overcome, as many of their final balls were late or scuffed. It was a nervous ending, but in the end, Inter got the win.

Inter would have to wait five minutes before Roma’s game against Atalanta finished. Two first-half goals by Cristiano Doni and Riccardo Zampagna put Roma down 2-0, and Luca Ariatti let a tap in squeak by his feet early in the second half that would have made it 3-0. Roma’s Simone Perrotta finished off a rebound some fourteen minutes later at 64 minutes that reduced the gap to 2-1, but Atalanta’s defence would hold its own and Roma would create few chances towards the end. The final score would be 2-1, confirming Inter’s fifteenth title in their history and the first on the field since 1989.

To be fair, this won’t be a season many except Inter Milan fans will want to remember. Already scarred coming off the heels of Calciopoli that saw Juventus dropped to Serie B, Milan handed an eight-point deficit, Reggina 11, Fiorentina 15 and Lazio three, Serie A was rocked by another unfortunate incident as rioting cost the life of Filippo Raciti in early February following Palermo’s 2-1 win over Sicilian rivals Catania. Raciti’s death forced the Italian government to pass harsh new measures aimed at curbing soccer violence, including tighter security at games, preventative arrests for suspected hooligans, and bans on block sales to away supporters. While the rest of the season has so far been problem-free, Raciti’s death cast a grey shadow onto a season many Italians had hoped would be remembered for its football. Thus, one might have hoped for a genuine title race- like what is happening in England between Manchester United and Chelsea- to create a little bit of excitement in the season, but Inter had wrapped up the title effectively months ago, as they moved to 14 points clear of Roma with a 1-0 win at home to Cagliari and a 1-0 Roma loss at Empoli on February 17.

Of course, those snarling that Inter had won it too easily just might have missed some fabulous soccer. When Inter were on their game, they moved the ball with precision and defended with confidence, being a joy to watch whenever they took the field. This may be a team stocked with talent- from defenders such as Materazzi and Fabio Grosso, the composed play of wingback captain Javier Zanetti, midfield dynamos such as Patrick Vieira and Estaban Cambiasso and winger Luis Figo to the deft striking of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Hernan Crespo- but they may be the only team- aside from Lazio- that plays the most as a collective unit, being a team of players that knows their roles and sticks to them. Any holes the team may have- particularly in midfield and on defence- got covered up in Inter’s great on-field co-ordination. This wasn’t a team that was simply lucky- they were a team that definitely played as the class of Italy, and thus their scudetto was well deserved. There are those who say that the title doesn’t count because Juventus was in Serie B and Milan started with an eight-point penalty, but Milan didn’t reach zero until their fifth game, getting dubious draws against Sampdoria and Siena and even dropping another early encounter with Atalanta (although they may be stronger than many might have predicted). Inter, let us also not forget, was once second behind Palermo and hit only 10 points after five games- an on-form Milan could have had a three point deficit at that stage. Finally, taking away the point deductions still doesn’t give anyone enough points to have prevented Inter’s title-clinching performance this weekend. Thus, while Inter may have had “a head start”, their opponents were the ones who didn’t take advantage of their opportunities, allowing Inter to finish them off one by one.

The only thing that is left is the Coppa Italia against Roma in May, but for Inter fans, that prize will just be a bonus. The real prize was won this weekend, capping off a season that may never be repeated in Italy. Will this be another period of Inter domination not seen since Le Grande Inter? Time may tell, but this year’s team certainly played like it.

-DG