Let's stay focused. Cagliari-Roma 1-0. Celtic.
Since the first article, I've emphasized the importance of keeping your head. This holds true for Roma, which has been dragged into a bullfighting atmosphere by Cagliari and the Sant'Elia. It holds true for Europe, which has seen its enemies multiply externally (like the US and Russia) and internally (like various extremist parties, friends of Russia and opposed to European political unity). Now Roma will travel to Glasgow again (after defeating Rangers 0-2 there) to face the Catholic side of Glasgow: a noble and prestigious European club like Celtic.
When I speak of irrational and anti-European extremism, I mean both the right and the left. In Italy, the examples are the fascists of the League (on the right) and those charlatans of the Five Star Movement (on the left). These anti-European parties (there are similar examples throughout Europe, not just in Italy) are suspected of taking money from Russia for their intellectually irrational positions.
Perhaps the only solution is to dilute extremist stupidity with a bit of moderate rationality, as was done in Italy with the Lega-FdI-Forza Italia government, and as Germany could do, for example, by uniting the Nazis of AfD with the Christian Democrats of the CDU, or as France could do, for example, by allying the grandchildren of the fascists, sweetened by Jordan Bardella, with the Gaullists (and in France, during the Second World War, fascists were seen as traitors, colluding with the German Nazis. The anti-fascist spirit is very strong, so I don't rule out the possibility that even the polite Jordan Bardella could take a beating in the second round of the presidential elections).
And that's exactly right. I repeat, going to negotiate with the US like Italy doesn't provide the same bargaining power as Europe, and this is true even for more populous European countries (like France) and even more economically powerful (like Germany). It's therefore normal for continental powers (like the US and Russia) to prefer (on a superficial reading) the disintegration of Europe.
Something that Europeans shouldn't like if they used their wits, and which China doesn't like, even though it has reasoned that political Europe is a more credible commercial and political partner than many small states.
When others start to argue, perhaps even rationally because they know they have less technical ability, you have to be able to stay focused on the match. That's what Cagliari lacked. Cagliari played with great determination. It seemed like it was the World Cup final for them.
We were bad from the start. On the right flank, Soulé was constantly doubled up. There, he had to get through to Celik. We didn't succeed. Baldanzi tried to be dangerous at the start, but he was too eager to be the nation's hero, when at times he had to lay it off for the other attackers or simply leave it alone.
| 14th Matchday Serie A | First Half | Second Half | Final Score | Scorers |
 | 82’Gaetano | |||
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On the left flank, Tsimikas was inadequate in the first half. Pellegrini, adapted to a left winger, was too alone. The substitutions didn't work any better. Ferguson was ineffective in getting the team up the pitch. Dybala had no outlets. I repeat: the result is fair. We were too nervous. If we had stayed focused, even 10 against 11, we could have created more.
Overall, Cagliari deserved it. Well done to Folorunsho, at the start of the second half, for creating the conditions for Celik's red card. The right decision. Gaetano's goal came from a corner. Then they turned it into a bullfight, and we fell for it like chickens. Congratulations to Cagliari. I humbly remind them that they didn't win the Scudetto and are in danger of relegating to Serie B.
We're firmly in the Champions League zone and can climb the European rankings. A review of the situation is necessary, but let's not jump to hasty, reckless conclusions before the expected March/April. At that time, we'll be able to realistically see what we can fight for. It wasn't right to book the Circus Maximus two weeks ago; let's not create tragedy now.
Facing Celtic in Glasgow means playing a match with great charm for the stadium and the opponent, but it's important not to get enchanted by the magic of the weather and bite the bullet: we'll start as favourites.
Celtic have had a poor start to the season. They were eliminated from the Champions League preliminary round by Kairat Almaty (albeit only on penalties) and had to surrender their dominance in Scotland to Hearts of Midlothian (the white and red club of the Edinburgh Protestants), who beat them 2-1 on Sunday.
They've now changed coaches, finding a good mentor in Frenchman Wilfried Nancy. They're in the playoff zone in the UEL, where they just brutalized Feyenoord 1-3 in Rotterdam.
In Cagliari, we played poorly. Cagliari deserved it. In the end, we allowed ourselves to be carried away by the stadium and our opponents, even though it was vital to stay focused. Our fellow Europeans will also have to use their heads when voting and vote for pro-European parties, because only a strong Europe has the bargaining power to negotiate on equal terms with the US and China. Now we'll face Celtic in Glasgow in a stadium and against an exciting opponent, but we'll have to stay focused on the match: we're favorites.
Daje Roma!
Giordano Sepi