Milan show strengths and weaknesses in qualifying

AC Milan made it to the last 16 of the Champions League with a 3-2 win over Germany’s Schalke 04 on Tuesday but the manner in which the...

AC Milan made it to the last 16 of the Champions League with a 3-2 win over Germany’s Schalke 04 on Tuesday but the manner in which they did so told much of the strengths and weaknesses of Carlo Ancelotti’s side.

Milan ended top of Group E but given the tight balance of the group, had Schalke scored in the nervous final 25 minutes a 3-3 result would have eliminated the six-times European champions.

Ancelotti chose to focus on the positives after the win: “The reality is that Milan are in the last 16 and there has to be a reason for that.

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“The team responded well physically and reacted well to the defeat at Chievo on Saturday. We have gone through in first place and we will be contenders this season as we have been in the last three years,” he said.

Milan won the competition in 2003 and were beaten finalists last season, losing to Liverpool on penalties after leading 3-0 at half-time. The reason Milan are indeed contenders again despite failing to beat PSV Eindhoven over two games and drawing away to Schalke before Tuesday’s narrow win is their attacking quality.

Two goals from Kaka, lively and inventive throughout, and yet another magnificent free-kick from set-piece specialist Andrea Pirlo were the highlights of Milan’s display. Andriy Shevchenko’s constant movement and intelligence were a reminder of the contribution the Ukrainian can make to the side even when he fails to get on the scoresheet.

	Tuesday’s Results

	• Group E: AC Milan 3 Schalke 2; PSV Eindhoven 2 Fenerbahce 0 • Group F: Olympiakos Piraeus 2 Real Madrid 1 ; Olympique Lyon 2 Rosenborg Trondheim 1 • Group G: Chelsea 0 Liverpool 0; Real Betis 0 Anderlecht 1 • Group H: Artmedia Bratislava 0 Porto 0; Rangers 1 Inter Milan 1

It was a game made for Gennaro Gattuso, the tigerish midfielder whose aggression made sure that Milan more than matched the Germans physically in midfield although the Italy international was lucky to get through the 90 minutes with only a yellow card after some stern challenges. But, surprisingly for a team packed with internationally respected defenders, it is Milan’s backline which continues to be their weak point. Admittedly right-back Cafu was missing through injury and captain Paolo Maldini limped off in the first-half but a central pairing of Italy’s Alessandro Nesta and Dutchman Jaap Stam would still be the envy of most clubs. Yet Milan never looked secure against the Schalke attack and, as several Serie A teams have exposed this season, they are surprisingly weak at dead-ball situations.

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“The problem is the apprehension we have in such situations. We show that by the way we deal with those balls in training — so it is something that we still have to improve on,” said the Milan coach. (Reuters)

Mixed Fortune

	Rangers first Scottish team in knockout phase Glasgow: Rangers became the first Scottish club to qualify for the knockout phase after a 1-1 draw with Inter Milan. They finished six points behind Inter, who had already won Group H, and one ahead of Artmedia Bratislava, who go into the UEFA Cup after a 0-0 draw with 2004 European champions Porto. The Rangers team had gathered at the side of the Ibrox pitch with manager Alex McLeish to await the final result from the night’s other group match, which was delayed by four minutes. The relieved players were finally able to embrace each other as the stadium announcer declared that Artmedia had drawn 0-0 with Porto to confirm Rangers had qualified for the last 16. Porto knocked out in muddy stalemate Bratislava: Former European Cup winners Porto were dumped out of Europe on Tuesday when they were held 0-0 by Artmedia Bratislava in their final Champions League Group H game on a filthy night in the Slovakian capital. The Portuguese aristocrats were playing their 100th match in the competition but looked a bedraggled bunch at the final whistle as their hopes of reaching the last 16 were sunk on a night more suited to mud wrestling in the Tehelne Pole stadium. The few hundred Porto fans huddled together in the cascading rain do not even have the consolation of a place in the UEFA Cup as a draw was sufficient for Artmedia to retain third place. • ‘We were close to our dreams. I’m sad that Rangers went through because I thought we were better than them’ —Vladimir Weiss, Artmedia coach PSV power through to knockout phase Eindhoven: PSV Eindhoven powered through to the knockout phase when goals by captain Philip Cocu and Jefferson Farfan gave them a 2-0 home victory over Turkey’s Fenerbahce. Cocu lost his marker and headed a free kick by Farfan into the corner of the net after 14 minutes. Farfan then converted from close range five minutes from time to seal victory, although the 1988 champions earlier rode their luck when Timmy Simons handled in the area but the referee waved away Fenerbahce’s penalty appeals. The evening started with a minute’s silence in memory of Frits Philips who died on Monday. The 100-year-old son of Anton Philips, co-founder of the Dutch electronics group, was involved with the Eindhoven side as a fan and main sponsor all his life.