Meanwhile, the Spartacists passed on the “San Siro” by the quite feasible opportunity to mark themselves in the tournament chronicles as an achievement much more honorable. They could not be the first to lose in the match, during which they were two goals behind the opponent. Could it be - who would argue? If Boyarintsev turned out to be firmer in sight and intent in the 88th minute, there would be no way to repulse Julio Cesar's blow from the penalty area, about twelve meters. And then, look, much more fun and even affectionate would be the reviews about this Milan exit. And without the usual luck of Boyarintsev’s luck, he will now leave a vague and sad memory about himself ...
Roberto Mancini successfully scratched the bottom of the barrel, equipping the starting lineup of the Recoba - Cruz ligament. One went out to play in an official match for the first time this season, the second time he got into the number of those who started the game. With Adriano and Crespo left in the reserve (he managed to heal the injury), the trainer's move seemed at first piquant. But already according to the description by the second hand of the first revolution it was worth renaming it as a visionary. It was precisely Rekoba who, with his super-obedient left from the penalty area, threw the ball to the goalkeeper's border. The Spartak defense was alarmed by the phenomenon of the “standard" of Materazzi himself and forgot to think about other dangers. Assistant touch Vieira was not even a pass - so, an accidental bounce from his leg. But, to the hosts' scoring happiness, the ball flew right under the boot of Cruz, without interference thrusting him under the crossbar.
After a couple of attacks, the advantage of Inter has gained dimensions that horrified Russia. The sour defense obeyed the dynamic multi-path of the Milanese. Kowalewski tried to intervene by playing on the way out. But really the ball did not hit. Rekoba re-caught him on the left edge of the penalty area and threw it to the opposite. There, on take-off, Cruz was already waiting for a gift with his forehead ready to hit the empty net.
Quick goals are insidious with those who get it. But here two of them happened. And therefore the carelessness which predictably struck Inter was not so dangerous. Firstly, the Spartacists themselves played for the Milanese. Even before the break, Boyarintsev and Mozart were not scored in situations that completely disposed of them. The Russian struck above the gate, taking a penalty pass from Pavlyuchenko in the penalty area. And the Brazilian's skillfully twisted into the “nine” kick from fifteen meters in a brilliant save was deciphered by his compatriot Julio Cesar. Secondly, the goal obtained by the Muscovites after the intermission (Pavlyuchenko closed the cross of Boyarintsev) was not a disaster for Mancini. He reacted to the alarm signal with replacements and cautiously rebuilt the team to save what was achieved. As a result, Inter took the first points in the tournament. But again guarded by a gray game.
True, the Spartacists were more disappointed. It seemed that they yawned several times the chances to turn events back. For this, they clearly did not have enough organized collectivism and confident steering. Both on the field (consider this an assessment of the game, first of all, Titov), and beyond his edge. In a situation where the owners struggled to maintain a precarious balance, any minimal game gain could be decisive. Alas, no reserves were found for this. Vladimir Fedotov did not even dare to fully use the permitted replacement quota ...
Meanwhile, in Lisbon, “Bavaria”, having beaten “Sporting”, has established itself in the status of an unconditional favorite of group “B”. And at the same time she extended a rare series of successful visits to Portugal: eight matches - not a single defeat!
Felix Magat surprised with a frank bet on dictatorship. He built the attack according to the trident principle, detaching Podolski, Pizarro and Santa Cruz ahead. To abandon this aggressive scheme in the second half of the coach was forced not so much by leadership in the score, but only by a numerical minority: shortly after the break, Schweinsteiger ran into the second “mustard”. Before that, however, the zealous Bavarian managed to become the main positive character of the match. With a blow from a 30-meter distance, he got a wonderful goal, decorated with subtext. The point of the plot is that Schweinsteiger again led the goalkeeper Ricardo into despair. After all, we remember how it all began in the bronze finals of the World Cup, where the German scored the Portuguese in a similar style twice?
Sergey NOVIKOV
INTER - SPARTAK - 2: 1 (2: 0)
Goals: Cruz, 1 (1: 0), Cruz, 9 (2: 0), Pavlyuchenko, 54 (2: 1).
Inter: Julio Cesar, Cordoba, Zanetti, Stankovic, Figo (Adriano, 69), Cruz (Samuel, 90), Micon, Vieira, Dakur, Recoba (Burdisso, 59), Materazzi.
Spartak: Kovalevsky, Zheder, Boyarintsev, Titov, Pavlyuchenko, Jiranek, Kovacs, Rodriguez, Bystrov (Kalinichenko, 75), Mozart (Quincy, 46), Shishkin.
Warnings: Rodriguez, 32, Figo, 33, Kalinichenko, 80.
Judge: Layek (France).
Milan. "Giuseppe Meazza".