Glorious failure was once the preserve of the Scottish national team. Now it seems Milan are getting in on the act.
There are some that will refute that observation straight off the bat, that will argue it's a disgrace for the Serie A leaders to be eliminated from the Champions League by a team sat 5th in the Premier League. Those people are living in the past. In 2008 to be precise, when Milan were reigning champions of Europe and Harry Redknapp took charge of a Tottenham side bottom of the table.
Once they were the butt of every joke, perennial underachievers, but Spurs are now one of the growing powers in European football. Luka Modric, Aaron Lennon, Gareth Bale, Rafael van der Vaart - these players would walk into just about any team on the planet.
Premier League clubs in general have a considerably larger bank balance and talent pool than their Serie A counterparts, and have done for some time. Does that make it the more entertaining and interesting league? I would suggest it doesn't, but that's an argument for another day.
Not that Italy's representatives should accept defeat to English clubs as inevitable, but we could do without the mock outrage when it does happen.
Whilst Milan need not be ashamed by their elimination, they should be frustrated and disappointed, by their first leg performance in particular. Not just because it gave them a mountain to climb but because it fuelled the myth of the Giuseppe Meazza nursing home, feeding the old stereotypes, that Milan are ageing, slow, and predictable.
Stereotypes that were shattered within minutes of kick off last night at White Hart Lane. You could hear the shock in the commentator's voices. Here was a Diavolo that attacked with pace, verve and vigour, that refused to conform to outdated perceptions, that contained several players under the age of 25 and brought a 19-year-old and a 20-year-old off the bench.
Unfortunately for the Rossoneri, their first half performance was so good that they simply assumed the goal would come, and slacked off in the second half. The biggest problem though, as it has been all season, was missed chances, and the biggest culprit, as he has been all season, was Robinho. The praise for William Gallas's goal line clearance let Roby off the hook, because he shouldn't have scuffed his finish in the first place.
So Milan are out, but they'll be back next year, and they'll bring Alexandre Pato, Rodney Strasser and Alexander Merkel with them. Not quite a nursery, but not a nursing home either.
:devilcry: But in the next CL we will be there again! And much better than now! We are Milan!:
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The 2012 champions league final is on may 19. According to Wolfram Alpha, 9 months before that is August 19, 2011.
gotta say, the refs do love Barca
