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Clean feet

While there will alwa ys be someone digging ar ound for a conspiracy, John P itonzo is happy that calcio has finally cleaned up its act as he reflects on the end of an eve ntful season in Milan

CalcioItaliaJohnPitonzo'spostcardfromItaly.www.channel4.com/footballitalia

John Pitonzo’s Postcard from Florence

Milan, in the end, didn’t seem so dirty. They’ve We won’t talk about Steven Gerrard’s comment

Dear Fellow Football Fans, There’s much to celebrate now that the book is closed on another season. First, hats off to the League for finally cleaning up the Calciopoli mess. No one was hurt more than our beloved Viola, as the 15-point deduction cost them a Champions League place in the upcoming season. If they’d been punished the same as our northern neighbours Milan, we’d at least be fighting for one of two available slots. The Rossoneri, hit with the lesser penalty of eight points, are in the European Cup again next year, though they never threatened the Scudetto. Calcio is cleaner. Let’s hope it remains that way. Some will cast doubt and claim that the end of the season has revealed some very dubious results. Torino, a team that has to continually fight not to be relegated, beat Roma at the Stadio Olimpico in the third from last match of the season. Strange result? Not really, as the Giallorossi hit the woodwork three times. Ascoli, already condemned to Serie B, beat Palermo, desperate for a win to qualify for European football – no dishonesty in that. Inter, League champs down 2-0 and then 3-2 at home to Lazio, end up winning 4-3. Calcio is cleaner? No, calcio is clean! There are still many matches under the microscope as investigations in this country take longer than divorces and canonisations, but the Italian House of Football is being rebuilt, which is clearly evident by the colour of the flag on the rooftop – Nerazzurro. Finally, after 17 years, all ‘inter-ference’ out of the way, Inter have managed to win their 15th Scudetto. New young referees are steadily taking the place of the old and the crooked, men easily influenced by gold Rolexes and wads of Euros – so the days of friendly favours, mobile phone handshakes and such are long gone.

Milan, in the end, didn’t seem so dirty. They’ve made three Champions League Finals in five years. How scandalous is that? What did they do, corrupt all of Europe? Still, they were penalised eight points. The Italian League has provided a shining example of what it means to clean house. If there is something the League bosses and communities must continue to work on though, it is controlling the violence in and around the stadiums. Controversy will still reign as refs make questionable calls, but human error is part of the game. What the journos, pundits and talk show hosts need to do is stop splitting hairs, stop spending so much time replaying every offside call, every questionable foul to the point of creating a conspiracy. Due to the nature of when Calcio Italia’s pages are printed, I’m going to go out on a limb ahead of the Champions League Final and say that I am happy to celebrate the Rossoneri’s success. Did I put my money where my mouth is? No – I never bet on singles. Why so sure? The old adage says that lightning doesn’t strike twice in the same place. Clichéé? It fits. In 2005 they were up 3-0 at half-time – well, you know the rest. We won’t discuss Andriy Shevchenko’s valid goal being disallowed, a strike which would have ensured the game would have ended after 90 minutes. We won’t talk about the report that Rossoneri players were laughing at the interval, mocking their adversaries, because it was a ridiculous claim. Happiness at success produces wide smiles and happy chit-chat. Liverpool were rightfully feeling humiliated. But that’s the past.

Rino Gattuso is to a kitten what a pitbull is to a chihuahua – he does the running of three men and is all heart

We won’t talk about Steven Gerrard’s comment from his autobiography, reported by the English Press, that likened Milan’s Rino Gattuso to a kitten. That he is nothing to fear. Comical? Yeah – Gattuso is to a kitten what a pitbull is to a chihuahua. Gattuso has never made similar claims of Gerrard. No one ever says when they aren’t afraid of someone, unless they really are. So why did Gerrard unprofessionally slam the player as he did? How could he level such a criticism? So it could be argued that Gerrard is the more technically gifted of the two, the more skillful. But who in the world runs like Gattuso? No one, because he does the running of three men. He covers more balls than Gerrard could ever dream of. Who has the heart of Gattuso? No one, because he is all heart. The word quit isn’t in his vocabulary. He is all fight and it permeates the squad. You saw what he did to Cristiano Ronaldo in the second leg of the semi-final. Stifled him. Shut him down. Milan are better in the middle. They are stronger defensively. And while they don’t have a true attack, they have enough to close down the likes of Man United and they have enough to put the ball in the net. So I’m going out on a limb, a strong one, by adding Milan’s seventh European Cup to the celebration. Remember, you’re only reading it post mortem. Forza,

So it could be argued that Gerrard is the more technically gifted of the two, the more skillful. But who in the world runs like Gattuso? No one, because he does the running of three men. He covers more balls than Gerrard could ever dream of. Who has the heart of Gattuso? No one, because he is all heart. The word quit isn’t in his vocabulary.

John Pitonzo

The football world is a far cleaner place since the Calciopoli scandal ousted men like Luciano Moggi

Steven Gerrard likened Rino Gattuso to a kitten, but most people see him more as a pitbull. Who would argue with that face?

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