Europe may be bustling with anticipation ahead of the most
eagerly awaited sporting event of the year, but the tension in
Italy, and in particular Turin and Milan, is at a whole new level.
After a few shadowy years in the competition, Italy's two finest
clubs have made it to the final of the UEFA Champions League. Fans
of Juventus and Milan have gone berserk buying jerseys, scarves,
flags and other merchandise ahead of this mega-clash and the
centres of both cities will be packed chock-a-block come Wednesday
evening.
Meanwhile, some thousand miles north of there, hundreds of
part-time and full-time workers are plugging away to make last
minute preparations for this grand spectacle. Manchester United
FC's Old Trafford stadium has been the busiest structure in Europe
over the past few weeks. With the world's richest club hosting this
year's event, football fans have no doubt that this Champions
League final will be one to remember for a long time to come.
For Juventus, winning the Champions League could be the icing on
the cake of a wondrous season where they have clinically defended
the league title they won last year. It would also wash away the
misery of two successive final defeats in the late 90s when it was
predicted that they would walk away as winners.
Milan meanwhile have had a disappointing league campaign and would
love to set it all right by putting themselves back on the Euro map
as champions. It has been eight years since the side made an impact
in the Champions League and nine since they actually won it (in
that memorable victory over Barcelona in Athens). Given that Cesare
Maldini lifted the cup as skipper 40 years ago on English soil,
they will be hoping that Paolo Maldini can repeat the same feat on
Wednesday.
Marcello Lippi's side have been dubbed favourites for this titanic
match-up by many. However, looking at head-to-heads in Serie A
there is little to go on. The Bianconeri triumphed 2-1 at the Delle
Alpi in the first-half of the season, while the Rossoneri secured a
deserved win by the same score a few weeks ago.
The obvious question on many a Juve fan's lips is just how will the
side get on without its orchestrater, Pavel Nedved? The Czech has
surely enjoyed the finest season of his distinguished career, and
would have graced such a huge occasion.
So what kind of game will we get? Well a fascinating tactical
battle for a start, and with all the talent on show the spectacle
shouldn't be short on quality. Perhaps it's dangerous to make such
forecasts as so many finals have disappointed in the past. The
smart money would have to be on the side who opens the scoring
going on to win the game.
Lippi will be more than aware of the need to stop the likes of
Manuel Rui Costa and Clarence Seedorf weaving their pretty patterns
with the ball. If they are allowed to provide decent service for
Andriy Shechenko and Filippo Inzaghi, the Bianconeri should get
ready to pay the price.
Therefore Edgar Davids will be so important to Juve's cause. He has
the ability to set the tempo of a game, and Lippi will hope he's in
the mood to dominate his 'manor' at OT. If the Dutchman can stamp
his authority in this area, Juve should be looked upon as
favourites.
ROAD TO THE FINALS
Milan: After putting in a couple of well-worked performances
against Slovan Liberec in the qualifying rounds, AC Milan burst
into a spectacular technical marvel in the first group stage. After
disposing of Lens at home, they went on to thrash Deportivo La
Coruña 4-0 away and then beat Bayern 2-1 twice to win the Group of
Death with two games to spare. Their results in the second group
stage were less spectacular, but no less effective. A wonderfully
architected 1-0 home win over Real was followed by three more wins
with the same score line over Dortmund, Lokomotiv and then
Lokomotiv again. By this time, they had won their group again and
while they lost the subsequent two games, it was
inconsequential.
The knockout stages were more dramatic as Jon Dahl Tomasson's 90th
minute strike versus Ajax put Milan through to the semis. Their
Dutch opponents seemed to be on the verge of an upset with the
score at 2-2, but Filippo Inzaghi managed to conjure up the needed
mojo and inspired the magical strike. The tension was no less in
the historical semi-final derby against city rivals Internazionale.
Andriy Shevchenko's away goal appeared to have put Milan in a
strong position after a 0-0 draw in Milan's home game, but in the
end the Rossoneri had to hang on by the skin of their teeth to
avoid a late Inter comeback.
Juventus: a draw against Feyenoord, and then home wins over Dinamo
Kiev and Newcastle set the tone in Juve's first phase group. They
may have lost away to the Toon in the following match, but a 2-0
win over Feyenoord courtesy of two Marco Di Vaio strikes set up
qualification. They then beat Dinamo 2-1 in the Ukraine despite not
needing a result.
After being held by Deportivo and beaten twice by Manchester United
in the next phase, the Bianconeri edged past Depor 3-2 at the Delle
Alpi to secure qualification. They went down 2-1 to Basle in the
last game, but it didn't matter.
Barcelona were to be Juve's next victims in the quarter finals.
After a disappointing 1-1 draw in the first-leg at the Delle Alpi,
Lippi's ten-men were on the back-foot for much of their visit to
Camp Nou but Marcelo Zalayeta's extra-time goal handed them a 2-1
win and set up a meeting with those other Spanish heavyweights Real
Madrid.
After David Trezeguet had levelled a Ronaldo opener, Roberto Carlos
controversially won the first-leg for the Merengues. But Juve were
in scintillating form in the return game, and goals from Trezeguet,
Del Piero and Nedved gave the Italians deserved progress to the
final.
TEAM NEWS
Milan: Carlo Ancelotti's biggest problem could be that his line-up
is likely to be more predictable than that of his counterpart.
While Juventus are looking to shuffle the pack around to compensate
for the loss of Pavel Nedved, Ancelotti is very likely to stick
with the same eleven that got him through against bitter rivals
Inter.
Recent doubts surrounding the fitness of Alessandro Costacurta are
said to be unfounded and if so, the former Italian international
will line-up alongside Alessandro Nesta, Paolo Maldini and Kakha
Kaladze in defence. Otherwise, Roque Junior will deputise at right
back. Dida has recovered from a broken finger and will man the
posts. Ancelotti looks set to stick with the midfield quartet that
was responsible for most of Milan's success this term. Gattuso,
Pirlo and Seedorf look set to share midfield duties behind Manuel
Rui Costa. While Gattuso will be exclusively responsible for
cleaning up the mess in the middle of the park, Pirlo and Seedorf
will also contribute with their playmaking skills.
Jon Dahl Tomasson's absence due to a shoulder injury means Milan's
only two fit strikers pair up in the form of Andriy Shevchenko and
Filippo Inzaghi. Rivaldo once again finds himself relegated to the
bench alongside the likes of Massimo Ambrosini and Serginho.
However, Ancelotti has made it clear that the bench players could
play an important role should they be brought on and he expects
them to be at their best.
Juventus: Lippi must decide whether to replace the suspended Nedved
with Camoranesi or Di Vaio. The former is the more likely
candidate, and was rested against Chievo on Saturday. The Turin
club have an otherwise fully-fit squad. Gianluigi Buffon will start
in goal, with a steady back-four of Lilian Thuram, Ciro Ferrara,
Paolo Montero and Alessandro Birindelli in front of him. Gialuca
Zambrotta and Camoranesi should occupy the wings, with the latter
being given more license to drift perhaps. Davids and Alessio
Tacchinardi will fill the central-midfield slots, while Trezeguet
and Del Piero will link up in attack.
WHO'S HOT
Gennaro Gattuso (Milan): While this section is mostly reserved for
deft-footed playmakers, deadly strikers and barbican defenders, it
would be unfair to single out anyone but this man. Gattuso has been
one of the key reasons Milan have made it to the final. While
Inzaghi's goals have powered Milan through the opening stages and
the Nesta-Maldini partnership has gone a long way in ensuring the
team's defensive poise, it has been Rino Gattuso's lion-hearted
approach that has powered the Milan midfield engine. Without
Gattuso's endless running, this Milan side would lack bite.
Alessandro Del Piero (Juventus): in the absence of Nedved all eyes
will now turn to Del Piero, the Bianconeri's other main creative
force. The 28-year-old is desperate to make up for previous
failures on the world stage, and the fact that he is physically
stronger and psychologically more mature as a player, stand him in
good stead to do this.
WHO'S NOT
Kakha Kaladze (Milan): Although Kaladze has not done too badly of
late, the former Kiev defender has failed to put in performances
reminiscent of his efforts in Milan's 1-0 victory over Real Madrid.
Kaladze completely shut down Luis Figo in that game and yet managed
to contribute up the wing as well. When on form, Kaladze has often
been lethal, charging up and down that left flank, much like
another great who plays alongside him: Paolo Maldini. His alert
defensive plays have also made him a valid replacement for the
aforementioned legend.
Mauro Camoranesi (Juventus): The Argentine has not featured
regularly in recent times, but is set to be asked to fill Nedved's
boots. Like Kaladze, he's not in particularly poor form, although
did have a torrid time when introduced against Real in the
semi-final first-leg.
