Pato brace puts AC Milan in the driving seat in the battle for the Scudetto

If the Rossoneri do go on to win the Scudetto this year, one thing is certain: no one will say the feat was attributable primarily to Zlatan Ibrahimovic, the Swede who happens to have won seven consecutive league titles in the last seven years. Brazilians Pato and Robinho have added pace and clinical finishing ability to the Milan attack, and nowhere was this more apparent than in Saturday's derby against Inter Milan. Pato, above all, showed why he deserves a place amongst the top 10 strikers in the world by demonstrating immaculate composure and positional awareness to score the first two goals for AC Milan that sent them well on their way to victory over Inter. In the first minute, Robinho ended up parrying the ball to Pato after failing to get around the keeper. Pato, in the number 7 jersey, made no mistake in burying the ball in the back of the net. In the 62nd minute, Pato got away from his markers once again and headed in a cross from substitute Flamini to give AC Milan a virtually unsurmountable lead, particularly given the red card that had been awarded to Inter's Chivu in the 53rd minute. Antonio Cassano sealed a 3-0 victory from the penalty spot in the dying minutes but it was Pato, complemented by threatening plays from Robinho that settled the victory for Massimiliano Allegri's team to give them a stranglehold on the 2010-2011 Scudetto.

Mano calls European based Brazil squad for France friendly

Brazil coach Mano Menezes named a 23 man squad for the upcoming February 9 friendly against France composed entirely of European players. Goalkeeper Julio Cesar was recalled to the team but experienced international players such as Kaka, Lucio and Maicon were overlooked, once again, by Mano in an apparent effort to continue building the international experience of his younger players. One of the obvious questions elicited by his squad selection concerns who will play the role of playmaker given the absence of Kaka, Ganso, Ronaldinho and Carlos Eduardo. Mano's attacking line-up features Robinho, Pato, Andre and the Hulk. Lucas and Ramires appear slotted to occupy a defensive role in midfield. Andre Santos, David Luiz, Thiago Silva and Dani Alves look set to start in defense.

Mano's decision not to select an experienced playmaker raises the first doubts over his squad selections and ability to lead the national team. France have historically been a difficult opponent for the Selecao and, based on his squad selection, February 9 should prove no exception.

Neymar and a number of other domestic players were omitted because the scheduling of the friendly conflicted with domestic Brazilian matches in tournaments such as the Copa Libertadores.

Squad:

Goalkeepers: Julio Cesar (Inter Milan), Gomes (Tottenham), Neto (Fiorentina)
Defenders: Daniel Alves (Barcelona), Rafael (Manchester United), Marcelo (Real Madrid), Andre Santos (Fenerbahce), Breno (Bayern Munich), David Luiz (Benfica), Thiago Silva (AC Milan), Luizao (Benfica).
Midfielders: Lucas (Liverpool), Ramires (Chelsea), Sandro (Tottenham), Elias (Atletico Madrid), Hernanes (Lazio), Anderson (Manchester United), Renato Augusto (Bayern Leverkusen), Jadson (Shakhtar).
Forwards: Robinho (Milan), Alexandre Pato (Milan), Andre (Dynamo Kyiv), Hulk (Porto)

Leonardo notches win for Inter in debut match as coach; AC Milan hold off Cagliari

New Inter Milan coach Leonardo Nascimento de Araujo got off to a flying start with a 3-1 win for Inter over Napoli today, while league leaders AC Milan consolidated their place at the top of the Serie A table with a 1-0 win over Cagliari. Brazilian midfielder Thiago Motta opened the scoring for Inter in the third minute after some fine one touch passing between Goran Pandev, Dejan Stankovic and Motta, who finally volleyed the ball into the bottom right corner of the net, 18 yards from goal. Michele Pazienza equalized for Napoli with a header off a corner kick in the 25th minute, but Esteban Cambiasso put Inter back in front by heading home a Maicon cross in the 37th minute. Motta sealed Leonardo's first victory as coach with yet another header goal for the match, this time from an Inter corner in the 55th minute. Inter secured their victory without suspended striker Samuel Eto and the injured Wesley Sneijder and Julio Cesar. Leaders AC Milan now have 39 points from 18 games, whereas Inter occupy 6th place with 26 points from 16 games.