Soccer: Inter eye Cagliari
Mourinho shrugs off Balotelli distraction
05 February, 13:07
(ANSA) - Rome, February 5 - Inter Milan is aiming to keep its
eight-point Serie A lead against Cagliari Sunday despite the
distraction of the latest row between Jose Mourinho and Mario
Balotelli.The coach took the teen striker off while he was dithering over a corner kick in Wednesday's 1-0 Italian Cup semi-final first leg against Fiorentina.
TV replays showed Balotelli mouthing an imprecation and the club took Mourinho's side Thursday, giving the Italo-Ghanaian a 20,000 euro fine.
But the Balotelli-Mourinho love-hate relationship looks like being a continued sideshow to Inter's drive for its fifth scudetto in as many years.
"Mario swaps extraordinary moments with very naive ones," the coach said of his temperamental charge.
"He can change a match from one minute to the next but he doesn't sacrifice himself, tracking back like the older players".
"I tell him all this, he says OK and then he forgets a few hours later".
Balotelli looks like being on the bench, however, when Inter, top on 49 points, entertain 8th-placed Cagliari with Goran Pandev expected to partner Diego Milito again.
Wesley Sneijder is unavailable again after his red card in the derby and Dejan Stankovic is expected to play in the hole behind the strikers.
Cagliari coach Massimiliano Allegro, voted Italy's best 2009 manager by his peers this week with double Mourinho's vote, is expected to field an aggressive attack of Matri, Nene' and Jeda.
AC Milan, joint second with Roma on 41 points, have been distracted too in the run-up to Sunday's trip to 14th-placed Bologna amid tales of a three-day hotel "frolic" by Ronaldinho ahead of the derby where he played badly and missed a penalty.
The player on Thursday admitted being at the hotel but denied he was partying and will play in a three-man advanced midfield alongside Seedorf and Beckham and behind lone striker Marco Borriello.
Andrea Pirlo is expected to shrug off a thigh strain but Alessandro Nesta is still a strong injury doubt.
Bologna have risen out of the relegation zone with battling displays and are a specially tough proposition at their Dall'Ara lair.
Roma, who beat Udinese 2-0 in their Italian Cup semi-final first leg Thursday with Francesco Totti back from the first minute, are again looking to the inspirational skipper for their Sunday night trip to 11th-placed Fiorentina.
Totti will play as front man ahead of the in-form trio of Vucinic, Perrotta and Taddei.
Fiorentina were hit hard by the news of two failed doping tests for Adrian Mutu but have been buoyed by holding Inter to such a narrow Italian Cup win.
Alberto Gilardino has looked a shadow of his early-season self recently but will still lead the line ahead of Marchionni, Jovetic and Vargas.
Alberto Zaccheroni, new coach of fifth-placed Juventus, will again tread on hot coals amid a continuing injury crisis at 15th-placed Livorno Saturday night after last week's hard-fought 1-1 draw with 15th-placed Lazio, his first match in charge.
Long-term absentees Vincenzo Iaquinta, Mauro Camoranesi, David Trezeguet and Christian Poulsen have been joined by Claudio Marchisio and Bosnian midfielder Hasan Salihamidzic.
Zaccheroni, who took over from Ciro Ferrara, is a caretaker till the end of the season but knows he is expected to try to get Juve back into the Champions League zone.
Other matches (all Sunday 14:00 GMT unless otherwise specified): Palermo (12th) - Parma (12th) (17:00 Saturday) Atalanta (19th) - Bari (8th) Genoa (8th) - Chievo (12th) Lazio (15th) - Catania 18th) Siena (20th) - Sampdoria (7th) Udinese (17th) - Napoli (4th)
