The Day I Played with Ronaldo

After the team rested for half a day and resumed training, Mancini called Ricardo to the sidelines of the training field and had a brief conversation.

"Licardo, I am very satisfied with your performance in the last game. Can you maintain this state?"

Licado said calmly: "Of course I can, I'm ready, Boss."

Mancini nodded: "I can't guarantee that you will start every game in the future. But let me tell you, you are already in my consideration, and I may gradually put more burden on your shoulders."

"I'm glad, BOSS. I think I can take responsibility."

"In private communication, you can call me Roberto," Mancini said with a smile, "Ronnie and I have talked about you many times, and he thinks you can bring great help to the team. Frankly, I have always I doubted his words, but you made me change my mind. Now, go back to training, put on a good performance, and fight for yourself a starting spot."

"Okay, Robert."

That's the end of the conversation.

Three days later, Inter Milan played Palermo at home, with Ronaldo back in the starting XI. Mancini did not fulfill his words, he still let Ricardo sit on the bench and wait for the opportunity.

In the first half, the two sides scored 0:0.

Shortly after the start of the second half, Mancini let Ricardo warm up, and in the 55th minute, let Ricardo replace Van der Meyde and play the right midfielder.

In this position, Ricciardo did not enjoy himself on the left, but he played better than Van der Meyde, who was struggling. He used an accurate cross just after he came on the field and almost helped Ronaldo score.

Inter Milan, who had been unable to attack for a long time, played a little impatiently, but was seized by the opponent to counterattack successfully.

Before the end of the game, Ricardo sent the ball accurately to Ronaldo's feet after breaking through from the right wing. Ronaldo showed the demeanor of the king of the ball. He stopped and started consecutively in a small area, throwing off two defenders. Before he knocked across the goal, Adriano, who was unmarked, scored an empty goal and equalized the score.

On the evening of September 22, Inter Milan was a guest in Bergamo, and challenged the newly promoted Atalanta away.

Atlanta has just been upgraded, but their strength is actually not bad, with many capable players.

At the "Italia Bleu" stadium, they took advantage of the home field, overwhelming Inter Milan for a while, and took advantage of Zenoni's header to take the lead. At the end of the first half, they led 1-0 Inter Milan.

It seems to have become a routine to change Ricardo when falling behind. After the intermission this time, Mancini put Ricardo on the field, replacing Kiley Gonzalez and playing left midfielder.

Ricardo's appearance was the turning point of this match.

Not long after he played, he successfully connected with Ronaldo. He made a direct pass from outside the penalty area. Ronaldo got the ball diagonally, and successfully shot from a small angle to the far corner to equalize the score.

Five minutes later, Inter Milan handed the ball to the left in a counterattack. Ricardo took the ball inside and sent a through ball. Goalkeeper Taibi hit an empty goal.

The score became 2:1, and Inter Milan reversed the situation.

Atlanta seemed to have lost its fighting spirit for a while, and looked confused on the court. Soon, Ricardo sent another assist for Ronaldo. After getting rid of the entanglement on the left, he picked the ball into the penalty area. Ronaldo volleyed without waiting for the football to land. .

This conceded goal allowed Atlanta to focus again, and they quickly increased their investment in offense. A mistake by Mihajlovic gave Komandini a golden opportunity in the penalty area, and his calm shot slid into the goal from Toldo's armpit.

Inter Milan slowed down the tempo and started more inverted kicks and midfield possession.

Although Atlanta was eager to equalize the score, it did not get a good chance.

Before the end of the game, Veron's wonderful pass found Adriano, Adriano rushed into the penalty area after stopping the ball in the chest, and shot with his left foot.

The final score was fixed at 4:2, and Inter Milan reversed and won.

Although the game was won, the fans were not satisfied. They questioned Mannich on the Internet why he could not determine the next stable starting lineup, asked why Mancini had to wait until he was behind to deploy Ricardo, and questioned why Mancini played so embarrassingly against the newly promoted team...

Mancini himself is thinking about this question. Last season, he led Lazio, which was unable to pay wages, and he led the team to play well, and finally hit sixth to qualify for the UEFA Cup.

This season leads Inter Milan, which is even stronger and has the current football champion Ronaldo. He is confident of competing for the championship, but the reality gave him a blow to the head.

This team is more difficult to lead than he imagined. There are many factions in the team, and the bosses don't take his head coach's words to heart.

In the few official games he coached, he used different starters each time. Except for the six positions of Toldo, Zanetti, Materazzi, Veron, Ronaldo and Adriano, which are basically determined, the remaining five positions have different players in each game.

It's not that he doesn't want to fix a starter, but that there are too many capable and talented players in the team. In fact, everyone can contribute to the team, and several factions have different demands.

For example, the left midfielder, Zanetti hopes that Keely Gonzalez can play the main force, Ronaldo hopes that his younger brother Ricardo can start, and Vieri hopes to let Emre play.

From the effect point of view, when Ricardo is on the field, the team's performance is the best. He staged a hat-trick of assists in the last game. The connection between him and Ronaldo is always a magic weapon to change the situation.

But Mancini can't let Ricardo play the main force immediately, there are still so many people waiting in line to play.

Rather than letting Ricardo come off the bench and change the situation when they are behind or in a draw, it is much better than letting Ricardo start and replace him when the team is difficult.

These things, and can not complain to the media, Mancini can only silently maintain the fragile balance of the locker room.

On the evening of September 26, Inter Milan played against Parma at home in San Siro.

The current Parma is no longer the original Parma. Many of the main players have left, but they still won the fifth place in the league last season, and they are still considered a strong team.

Famous generals such as Cannavaro Jr., Bresciano, Morfeo, Corradi, and Delvecchio have allowed Parma to maintain an excellent combat effectiveness.

At the end of the first half, Inter Milan was still behind 0:1. Corradi received an assist from Mofeo and scored a goal.

Mancini had no choice but to let Ricardo come off the bench again.