Sevilla bids farewell to ridiculous

Calcium dying, the stadiums are semivacíos tombs, the catenaccio exaggerated its devastating effect to turn a game in an exercise close to masochism ... Okay, this is true. But chestnuts played with an Italian team remains a serious thing.

To be told what to Seville, incapable of winning even a draw, a series without football, but with guts and emotion. In a scenario that would require hierarchy, the bicampeón of UEFA crashed with a racket and was sacked on the fast track, the competition has led to their greater glory in recent times.

Sevilla was little of that heroic and proud. Just Andres Palop, a colossus that kept his team over the life of that merited. Around it, found only shyness and abandonment among the group of Manolo Jimenez, a coach who continues to prove that the finals are not theirs. Again, their failure was all in a meeting that did not understand halftone. Having lived through it last year with Fenerbahçe in the Champions League and with Barcelona in the Cup, it must be concluded that the defect is long and it has not been corrected.

The batacazo Genoa returns all the doubts that Sevilla had left buried in the Bernabeu, and he returns a vulgar profile team, not greatness. Yesterday, survived with a concept such as Italian-agonist, and in that battle had nothing to scratch with Sampdoria.

Never chose football to overcome an opponent without much chicha, and gave no alternative to the script. Without access to football, he sought to be imposed by physical. The Genoese, of course, not repaired in expenses in its attempt at intimidation. Parties unusual in the game, as the hips and elbows, they acquired an unusual significance for pushing, to paste. Sevilla did not shy away from combat, especially Fazio, who as embistió a bison. Behind him, Maresca was responsible for slowing down and every ball that went wrong on their feet, gymnastics, in which it has been revealed as a teacher. Between them, finally, the match was a pestiño.

At the knife-edge

It came to rest at Sevilla, walking along the edge of the knife like a somnambulist, aware that, little by little, had been falling into the trap of Sampdoria. The first time he left with one-to-door auction, far from clear, but Luis Fabiano converted in half goal. Castellazzi was showcased. The pulse among goalkeepers was most interesting in such a gray evening.

Unless there was other talk. In Cassano, for example. Of unruly, intolerable and genial Cassano, the only ray of light in the darkness of Sampdoria. Cassano's show did not happen yesterday, at least of one type in decline. Cañitos abused with some of David Prieto, first, and then despaired, with a festival of gestures that neither Jim Carrey, for the imprecision of their own. Cassano gave the exact extent of the hardships of Sampdoria, forced to endure a character so crazy to own something light and talent. Walk, Cassano never ceased to be troubling.

Sevilla seemed to understand, at the start of the second half, it needed to offer something more. The signs, however, soon turned to worry. Konka became his second injured. In the warm-up, had broken Squillaci. A little later, Adriano was also going renqueante. By then, over time, Seville dead ... only assisted by the serum of a heroic Palop. Aware that Stuttgart's victory left them out, the Sampdoria fell in seville tornado over the area. In 10 minutes, Palop made three stops to miraculous Belluci, Delvecchio and Sanmarco.

The tragedy was close. And he consummated with the renovation of an old drama, the defense in the balls stopped. Bottinelli finished with a chest kick fault, before the impassivity of the defense Seville. The bicampeón was away, a victim of, again, a perverse sequence: Del Nido berrea ( "Those who do not want to have this opportunity to rectify"), his coach is wrinkle and Sevilla was hit. There are those who do not learn.

Bottinelli celebrating the goal with Palop protesting an offside. (AFP)

Result UEFA Cu: 18 December 2008

Group A

Paris S.G. 4 - 0 FC Twente Enschede

Racing Santander 3 - 1 Manchester C.

Group B

Benfica 0 - 1 Metalist Kharkiv

Olympiakos Piraeus 4 - 0 Hertha BSC

Group C

Sampdoria 1 - 0 Sevilla

Stuttgart 3 - 0 Standard Liege

Group D

NEC Nijmegen 2 - 0 Udinese

Tottenham H. 2 - 2 Spartak Moscow