Italian Serie A, Round 11: A.C. Milan-Palermo, Roma-Fiorentina Highlight Top Half Battles

The third goal didn’t take long, with Robinho scoring less than three minutes after he was inserted into the game. The substitute made an immediate impact and Palermo will go home with nothing.

With everyone pushing forward for the visitors in an attempt to find an equalizer, space was there for Milan to counter attack. They did just that, with Ibrahimovic receiving the ball out on the right flank after Palermo gave away possession. Ibrahimovic made a fantastic run, beating a couple of defenders and sucking the rest of the defense towards him as he ran with the ball from the halfway line to the edge of the penalty area. With all eyes on him, he laid a ball across the box to the late arriving Robinho. The Brazilian was completely uncontested by defenders and put the ball on frame. Sirigu was able to get a touch on the shot, but he couldn’t do enough to save it as the ball trickled into the back of the net to expand Milan’s lead in the 83rd minute.

Apparently the fourth time is a charm for Luca Banti. Four clear cut penalties have occurred in this match, but for the first time, the referee has given one.

Milan put together a great move, resulting in Massimo Ambrosini having the ball at his feet in the box. He appeared to have out-juked the keeper with Inzaghi in support, but he was hauled down by Salvatore Sirigu and Milan were granted the penalty. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who missed a penalty for Milan earlier this season, stepped up and slotted it home with an unsavable shot.

Palermo substituted on Fabrizio Miccoli for Javier Pastore in the 51st minute, and it has made a world of difference. Delio Rossi wanted to give the young Argentinian a chance to run off his knock, but it was obvious after a couple of minutes that he was not at his best. Miccoli came on, and Palermo started to look better.

The breakthrough came in the 63rd minute thanks to a low long range shot by Armin Bacinovic. Palermo put together a good attack, keeping the ball for an extended period of time, culminating with a dangerous cross into the box. Milan’s defense cleared, but the ball fell to an unmarked Bacinovic who took a low shot towards the near post. Abbiati appeared to be screened by Thiago Silva and stood absolutely still as the ball rolled into the back of the net.

This post was supposed to be a relatively long one, but there have only been two goals scored in the first half across Italy. It’s pretty hard to give updates on 0-0 matches that you’re not watching extremely closely, so we’ll go with what we know.

A.C. Milan are up 1-0 on Palermo thanks to Pato. Milan had a string of corner kicks around the 19th minute, and on the third one, Pato was able to find the back of the net. Clarence Seedorf delivered the ball on a silver platter to the Brazilian striker and he made no mistake about directing his clear header into the back of the net after slicing through two defenders. Two minutes earlier, Palermo had a penalty claim denied.

Alexandre Pato has scored in the 19th minute to give his side the lead after a very evenly matched start to the game. Milan had a good spell for a couple of minutes, resulting in a third corner kick in about 90 seconds. Clarence Seedorf delivered a great ball to the center of the penalty area and Pato rose above all, directing a great header into the back of the net.

This came only two minutes after Palermo were denied a penalty shout. On a corner kick, it appeared that Mauricio Ferreria Pinilla was clearly fouled in the penalty area. The referee, who had a clear view of the incident, believed the contact was incidental and waived at the players to play on.

The lineups are out, and they are interesting. Ronaldinho, Robinho, and Pirlo sit for Milan, while Miccoli sits for Palermo. Milan are obviously showing some serious respect for Palermo’s attacking midfielders.

A.C. Milan Lineup (4-4-2 Diamond): Abbiati / Antonini, Thiago Silva, Yepes, Abate / Flamini, Ambrosini, Prince-Boateng, Seedorf / Pato, Ibrahimovic

Serie A features a full slate of games this Wednesday, with all 20 teams in action. The Milan-Palermo and Roma-Fiorentina matches will be the biggest highlights, while all of the other title contenders are in tricky games that they should win.

Juventus go away to Brescia, who are fighting to avoid the drop. The signing of Fabio Quagliarella has spurred on Juve and they look poised to challenge the contenders to the end. They will be a scary team to watch when Milos Krasic returns from injury, but for now, the Old Lady will likely lean heavily on winger Simone Pepe.