Chapter 441: Serie A Oscar
On January 10th, after more than 20 days of winter break, the Serie A league resumed.
In the opening game, Genoa delivered an impressive 3-0 victory over Torino at home, showcasing excellent form.
That evening, the second match of the round took place, with Inter Milan hosting Cagliari at the Meazza Stadium.
Despite Cagliari scoring the opening goal, Inter Milan managed to equalize through Ibrahimovic. However, they failed to secure a win, settling for a 1-1 draw at home.
Meanwhile, Juventus narrowly defeated Siena 1-0, thanks to Alessandro Del Piero's crucial goal.
Napoli played at home and managed only a 2-2 draw against Roma.
Mirko Vucinic scored twice for Roma on the counterattack in the 22nd and 72nd minutes, capitalizing on Napoli's high defensive line. The assists came from Aquilani and Totti.
Napoli's two goals were both scored by Edinson Cavani. Within five minutes of the second half, after Gao Shen adjusted the team's tactics, Cavani found the back of the net twice. However, Napoli's overall performance remained unsatisfactory.
At the post-match press conference, Gao Shen expressed no surprise at the home draw against Roma.
"I think this is a normal result because we are building momentum and making adjustments for the upcoming matches," he explained.
He was referring to the small winter training camp organized by Buenaventura and Pintus during the break.
The camp had yielded excellent results last season, and Gao Shen believed the team could maintain that momentum this year.
Moreover, Napoli's overall trajectory still looked promising.
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Perhaps it was a coincidence, or perhaps both teams felt their lead in the league was secure, but the second round of matches after the winter break brought surprising results once again.
Inter Milan suffered a 2-1 defeat away at Atalanta.
Napoli, on the other hand, lost 1-0 to Chievo in Verona.
This marked Napoli's first defeat of the season.
After two matches following the winter break, the top two teams in Serie A—Napoli and Inter Milan—had both recorded one draw and one loss.
In his column, legendary Italian coach Arrigo Sacchi analyzed the situation. He noted that while both teams had used the winter break to adjust their physical fitness and form, the underlying issues were worth examining.
Sacchi speculated that in Napoli's 2-2 draw against Roma, Gao Shen had attempted to widen the gap at the top of the table by making tactical adjustments in the second half. Napoli briefly overturned the scoreline to lead 2-1 before settling for a draw.
"But Napoli's form in that match was far from ideal," Sacchi observed. "This is clearly a residual effect of the winter training camp."
In the following round, Napoli faced Chievo and shockingly lost 0-1 away from home.
Chievo, ranked 19th in Serie A and a clear relegation candidate, managed to pull off the upset.
Meanwhile, Mourinho, seeing an opportunity to close the gap, fielded his strongest lineup against Atalanta. Inter launched a ferocious offensive but ultimately lost 2-1.
"Inter Milan not only struggled with form but, more importantly, Mourinho has yet to resolve the team's offensive issues. Against a side like Atalanta, they simply didn't have a viable solution," Sacchi analyzed.
While both Napoli and Inter Milan had one draw and one loss, Sacchi believed their problems were different in nature.
However, La Gazzetta dello Sport published an article countering Sacchi's claims, accusing him of bias and belittling Inter Milan.
"That's understandable," the article quipped. "He's the best braggart in the business!"
What neither Sacchi nor the media emphasized, however, was the looming quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia, just three days away.
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In the Coppa Italia quarter-finals, Inter Milan faced Roma, while Napoli traveled to Turin to face Juventus.
Inter had the advantage of playing at home, while Napoli played their match away.
Interestingly, Mourinho deployed a 4-3-1-2 formation against Roma the same lineup he had used in Inter's recent draw against Napoli. Ibrahimovic and Adriano started as the twin strikers.
This time, however, Inter's double forwards, who had struggled against Napoli, tore apart Roma's defense.
Both Adriano and Ibrahimovic found the net, leading Inter to a 2-1 victory over Roma and a spot in the semi-finals.
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Napoli's quarter-final match against Juventus, on the other hand, was a grueling battle.
Claudio Ranieri, coaching at home, opted for a defensive 4-3-3 formation with three defensive midfielders, including Paulsen and Sissoko.
Ranieri's tactic—fortifying his midfield and defending his home ground with discipline, was clearly inspired by previous matches. He had seen how Mourinho's defensive tactics nearly secured a draw against Napoli and how Chievo and Roma had relied on tight defenses and counterattacks.
The match between Juventus and Napoli was dull and deadlocked, with neither side able to break through.
After 90 minutes of hard-fought play, the game ended in a goalless draw, sending it into extra time.
In extra time, Napoli's substitutes Dani Parejo and Mertens became the key players. Parejo delivered a brilliant pass, and Mertens, in a moment of individual brilliance, controlled the ball in the penalty area, dribbled past a defender, and struck a low shot into the net.
With Mertens' goal, Napoli defeated Juventus 1-0 in extra time and advanced to the semi-finals.
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The semi-finals featured Napoli, Lazio, Inter Milan, and Sampdoria.
Following the draw, Napoli was paired with Lazio, while Inter Milan would face Sampdoria.
Unlike last season, this year's Coppa Italia semi-finals had adopted a two-legged elimination format, while the final would still be decided in a single match.
The Italian Football Association's decision to adjust the schedule drew criticism, with many comparing it to the chaotic decision-making of the Chinese Football Association.
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After the Italian Cup, Gao Shen handed the team over to Carlo, who led the squad directly south from Turin back to Naples.
Gao Shen himself, along with Cavani, Hamsik, Bonucci, and a few other players, separated from the main group and headed to Milan to attend the Serie A Oscar Awards Ceremony, which was held the following day.
This is an annual event in Italian football.
Unlike FIFA's World Player of the Year or France Football's Ballon d'Or, which are global in scope, the Serie A Oscars focus exclusively on the previous Serie A season.
The selection process for the Serie A Oscars follows a unique set of rules.
Founded by the Italian Football Association in 1997, it is considered the most authoritative official recognition in Italian football.
The awards are limited to players, coaches, and referees in Serie A, and only performances from the previous season are considered. Voting is conducted by the Italian Players Association, and every player in Serie A has the right to vote.
This gives the Serie A Oscars the distinction of being an award selected by the players themselves—recognition from their peers.
There are several awards, including Best Goalkeeper, Best Defender, Best Newcomer, Best Local Player, Best Foreign Player, Best Player, Best Coach, and Best Referee.
What's particularly interesting is that while there are awards for goalkeepers and defenders, there are no separate categories for midfielders or forwards. Perhaps this reflects Italy's historical emphasis on defense or the reality that star players in midfield and attack often dominate the Best Player category.
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For Best Goalkeeper, the nominees were Buffon (Juventus), Julio Cesar (Inter Milan), and Handanovic (Napoli).
For Best Defender, the contenders were Chiellini (Juventus), Nesta (AC Milan), and Bonucci (Napoli).
The Best Newcomer shortlist included Giovinco (Juventus/Empoli), Balotelli (Inter Milan), and Hamsik (Napoli).
Napoli had no nominees for Best Local Player, which was contested by Del Piero, De Rossi, and Pirlo.
For Best Foreign Player, Cavani was shortlisted, alongside Ibrahimovic and Kaka.
In contrast to last season, when Inter Milan manager Mancini was widely mocked for winning the Serie A title but failing to make the shortlist for Best Coach, Gao Shen avoided such an embarrassment.
This time, Gao Shen was nominated for the Golden Chair Award (Best Coach), alongside Ancelotti (AC Milan) and Prandelli (Fiorentina).
Before the ceremony, some media outlets analyzed the nominations and concluded that Napoli was the most influential team on the list, with five players nominated. This not only highlighted the team's strength but also underscored Gao Shen's ability as a coach.
After all, every one of Napoli's nominees was personally scouted, signed, and developed by Gao Shen.
Napoli's five nominations topped Juventus and AC Milan, who each had four. Inter Milan had three nominees, while Roma had just one.
As for Mancini, last season's Serie A runner-up, he was once again left out of the shortlist.
This wasn't surprising.
If winning the league wasn't enough to earn him a nomination last year, why would finishing second qualify him this time?
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Mancini, who was currently unemployed, chose not to attend the ceremony at the South City Concert Hall in Milan.
Gao Shen sympathized with him.
"If you're not receiving an award, why show up just to watch others take the stage?"
There was some debate surrounding Ancelotti's nomination for Best Coach.
While it was true that AC Milan struggled with their squad last season, players like Nesta (nominated for Best Defender), Pirlo (nominated for Best Local Player), and Kaka (nominated for Best Foreign Player) all performed well, which made Ancelotti's nomination seem reasonable.
For Best Defender, Gao Shen had his own opinion. If he had to choose one defender from Napoli, he would have picked David Luiz over Bonucci.
In fact, between Chiellini, Bonucci, and Nesta, Gao Shen believed David Luiz was fully deserving of being nominated. He might even have outshone Chiellini or Nesta.
But this was an Italian award. Gao Shen knew he had to accept these biases.
Similarly, for Best Newcomer, Gao Shen felt players like Di Maria, Sanchez, Rakitic, and even Cavani were more deserving than Hamsik.
Rakitic, Di Maria, and Sanchez, in particular, had been consistently outstanding, yet it was Hamsik who received the nod.
As for Cavani, he was nominated for Best Foreign Player but not for Best Newcomer. Gao Shen thought this was logical given Cavani's age.
Before stepping into the South City Concert Hall, Gao Shen gave his players some advice:
"Don't take these awards too seriously. It's just the Serie A Oscars, not the real Oscars!"
With a smile, he added:
"Next season, let's aim for UEFA's Oscars!"