julio Cesar, one of the reasons for Inter success
Few people know that one of the strengths for Inter in the last couple of seasons was the Brazilian goalkeeper Julio Cesar.
Julio Cesar was signed by Inter in 2004 but made the first appearance for “the nerazzurri” only in 2005.
The Brazilian was brought at San Siro as a backup for much more valuable at that time Francesco Toldo.
Julio Cesar had an impressive series of evolutions and Mancini decided to offer him the starting role in Inter’s team. Since then Cesar contributed decisively to the success of the team.
The Brazilian offered security and constancy for Inter’s defence.
Besides the fact that he is a good shoot stopper Cesar is recognized for playing the ball well with his foots and more then that he likes to take penalties.
The 29 year-old goalkeeper proved again how important is for Inter this week, in Champions League match against Manchester United, having some great saves that could prove to be decisive for the qualification into the last eight.
At the moment Julio Cesar is one of the best goalkeepers in the world and if we consider his age we can say that he can remain on top for a long time.
Should Mourinho start with Balotelli at Lecce?
Mario Balotelli has been called up by Mourinho for this week game against Lecce after some weeks of absence. Balotelli was left out of the squad in the last six matches by Mourinho after he refused to play against Catania.
Since then Mourinho has not called him anymore and it looked like the transfer window will mean the departure of the Italian under-21 international from San Siro.
But after what he said at the pre-match conference we might think that the Portuguese technician has forget Balotelli.
Balotelli could take advantage on Cruz and Adriano missing trough injury and suspension and figure into the starting line-up.
Inter crosses a bad time, considering their past results, and a good performance from Balotelli against Lecce is expected.
Last game against Lecce at San Siro, Inter won the game after a late goal scored by Cruz.
Balotelli is a player with huge potential but his behavior is sometimes unacceptable. Mourinho said once that if he would train at 50% of his capability then he could become the best player in the world. His set-pieces are deadly and his control skills are fantastic somehow similar to Ibrahimovic.
Also Ibrahimovic advised balotelli to train harder and to listen to the coach because he is young and he still has a lot to learn.
San Siro Stadium
San Siro Stadium, also known as Giuseppe Meazza after former Inter and Italy legend, was build in 1925.
stadio san siro giuseppe meazza
The construction of the stadium lasted about a year and was inaugurated with a local derby won by Inter 6-3 against Milan. San Siro was designed by Ulisse Stacchini, based on an Anglo-Saxon model. There were around 120 construction workers and the whole operation cost was around five million Italian Lire.
At the beginning the stadium was owned by AC Milan, with president Piero Pirelli the main investor. Later in 1935 it was sold to local government. Since then the stadium hosts the home games for both Inter and Milan. Until now San Siro suffered few modifications, the most notable in 1939 and 1989 just before the 1990 World Cup that took place in Italy.
The stadium is situated in the San Siro district, in the west part of Milan, about 5-6 km from city center. The capacity of this “Temple of football” is 80065 fully covered, divided into four colored zones: red, blue, green and orange.
San Siro is one of the most modern stadiums in the world and one of the tourist sights in Milan. Guided tours are taking place every day, except Sunday, from 10:00 to 17:00. The San Siro Museum, which is situated inside the stadium, contains the history of both clubs and also collections of trophies and jerseys.