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Unhappy Adriano ready to quit football
Adriano, the Inter Milan and Brazil striker, has capped a turbulent week by announcing that he is ready to turn his back on football. “I quit,” the 27-year-old said. “I don’t enjoy this any more. I don’t know if it’s going to be one month, two months, six months or whatever. I won’t come back until I’ve regained some happiness.”
The star-crossed forward, whose contract with Inter runs until June 2010, said he was willing to give up his reported £120,000-a-week wages. “I don’t care about the money,” he said. “I care about being happy. And in Italy I’m unhappy. Everybody should have the right to pursue happiness.”
His words marked the latest episode in a career that, after a number of warning signs, appears to have derailed once and for all. Four years ago he was arguably the greatest striker in the world, but the cracks had already begun to appear. The death of his father, Almir, in August 2004, sent him into a spiral of depression and drinking. A split from his long-time girlfriend shortly after only served to drive him further into the darkness.
At first, he managed to repress the demons and, initially at least, Inter were unaware of his condition. By the spring of 2006 however, he was in freefall. Inter disciplined him for various unauthorised late nights in Milanese clubs and parties at his suburban villa. Despite visits to a number psychologists and psychiatrists, his behaviour remained highly erratic. Last season, Inter agreed to send him back to Brazil for six months, hoping that would help him regain some stability. But, despite playing well during his spell with São Paulo — 14 goals in 22 games — he struggled upon his return.
Even José Mourinho, appointed Inter coach in June, failed to make any significant inroads. The pattern was a familiar one: two or three solid outings followed by a month of depression. On October 29, after reportedly turning up intoxicated to a training session after being a spotted at a nightclub a few hours earlier, he was sent home and suspended for a month.
The latest instalment was last week. On April 3, following the international break, he failed to show for his flight back to Italy. For three days, he simply “disappeared”. It has since emerged that he spent the time among friends in Vila Cruzeiro, the favela — or slum — in Rio de Janeiro where he grew up.
Inter refused to be drawn on what would happen next. Indeed, as of yesterday, he had not spoken with anyone at the club. But Mourinho’s words said it all: “Inter did everything they could to help him. I reached out to him, both as his manager and as a fellow human being. So too did his team-mates and the president. What’s most important right now is not football, it’s that he finds some kind of happiness. If makes him happy, so be it. If we lose Adriano the footballer but gain Adriano the happy, well-adjusted man, that’s great.” TimesOnline
Francesco Totti Will Play In The Roman Derby – Luciano Spalletti
Roma and Lazio are set to do battle in the 132nd Derby della Capitale this weekend at the Stadio Olimpico in the Italian capital.
It’s a crunch clash for the Giallorossi in particular, a team who are desperately trying reduce the five-point buffer Genoa have over them in fourth, in order to qualify for next season’s UEFA Champions League.
Luciano Spalletti has had a number of injuries to key players to deal with in recent weeks, none more significant than those troubling Francesco Totti. Despite the lingering doubt over the fitness of the club icon for the upcoming derby, the coach is certain that he will be available for selection.
“Totti will definitely play, and I can say this because I have spoken to him and seen him in training,” Spalletti declared in an interview with the Roma Channel.
“He got through training very well, and the things he did on the track were all very positive, so the signs are looking good.
“He always wants to be out there playing, and especially in a match as significant as this, so for that reason, I know he will play this weekend.”
Spalletti had a few final comments to make in regards to a bizarre incident that occurred in the dressing rooms recently, when a reporter managed to enter the Roman rooms and make Totti feel degraded in front of his team mates.
“I don’t know the exact details of what happened, but I will investigate and find out.
“Totti is a person who has great respect for his team-mates and for the club, so he certainly would not have wanted to be put in a bad position,” Spalletti concluded.
Roma and Lazio get their highly anticipated derby match underway at 15:00 CET Saturday evening. Goal
Liverpool under pressure to respond
There is putting pressure on yourself to perform and then there is putting so much pressure on yourself and your team-mates that there is the danger of it being too heavy a burden to carry.
Whether Jamie Carragher’s battle cry yesterday proves to be an inspirational masterstroke or an ill-advised move that plays into the hands of Manchester United remains to be seen, but whichever it turns out to be, there is no doubting in the defender’s eyes the sheer enormity of Liverpool’s match against Blackburn Rovers at Anfield this lunchtime.
With United not playing Sunderland at the Stadium of Light until later in the day, Liverpool will move two points clear at the top of the Barclays Premier League if they beat Blackburn in an encounter that Carragher has warned his team-mates is the biggest league game in the 13 years he has been playing for the club.
“I’m not just saying this because of what happened against Chelsea the other night, but the league has always been the priority for everyone at the club,” Carragher said.
“In the 13 years I’ve been involved in the first team, this will be the biggest league game I’ve played in — it really is that important. This is a massive chance for everyone at the club and I’m sure the fans will create a great atmosphere because they know what is at stake.
“The incentive is there for us to go back on top of the league. It may only be for a few hours until United play, but you never know, it could even be for longer than that. That’s how big this game is and that’s why I honestly believe it’s the biggest we’ve had in the league since I’ve been at the club and maybe for even longer than that.”
Rafael Benítez, the Liverpool manager, is likely to leave the decision on whether to play Steven Gerrard from the start until as late as he can. The midfield player suffered a strain to an adductor muscle in his groin during the chastening 3-1 defeat by Chelsea in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final at Anfield on Wednesday. Benítez yesterday gave his captain an “80 per cent chance” of playing, but the manager is also wary of aggravating the problem, especially with the second leg against Chelsea to play at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday.
“Two games in four days, you have to be careful,” Benítez said. “We have to decide with him and the doctor whether to take the risk or not. I don’t think the physical approach [of Blackburn] will be a problem. It’s just if he feels OK or not.”
Benítez refused to respond to Sam Allardyce’s claims that the Spaniard loves “whingeing and moaning” and that he was “foolish taking on Sir Alex [Ferguson] because he knows every trick in the book”, although it is clear that there is little love lost between the Blackburn manager and himself.
Asked if he would shake Allardyce’s hand despite those comments, Benítez issued a pointed response. “If it’s necessary because I’m educated,” he said.
Benítez has been critical of Allardyce’s old Bolton teams in the past, claiming that they operated “outside the rules”, but David Dunn, the Blackburn midfield player, said that he hoped to hear the Liverpool manager complaining again.
“I don’t think we give a toss what people think of us at the minute,” Dunn, whose team are five points above the relegation zone, said. “It is whatever gets us results.
“If that is being direct and going long, then so be it. We are not in the position to be choosy, but I certainly hope Rafa Benítez is having a moan at us on Sunday, saying they couldn’t break us down, because it would mean we are doing our job right.” TimesOnline
