Two Scudetti and Two Key Calcio Dates

You are not considered a Calcio lover if by any chance you have no idea what happened in the so called Italian “La favola del 5 Maggio” (“The tale of 5^th May”) and the championship of 2004/2005, the ‘scudetto match’ between the giants of Serie A, AC Milan and Juventus.  In view of both, Derby d’Italia and the other derby between Juventus and Milan, we wouldn’t single out the most important one knowing that throughout the history of Calcio we have seen strong rivalries in the derbies despite their standings on the table.

“La favola del 5 Maggio” in 2001/02 is certainly one of the most emotional days of the Italian league in the 20^th century. Going into the last week of the fixtures, the title race fought out between Juventus and Inter was still not decided. Both teams had a difficult task, playing away from home, with Internazionale having the toughest test against Lazio in Rome, while Juventus were playing away at Udinese.

Juventus managed by Marcello Lippi back then, looked certain to get the win with David Trezeguet scoring a header at the very beginning of the first half. However, the Old Lady were struggling to keep their 0-1 lead, until Alessandro Del Piero received a wonderful assist from his companion Trezeguet, to score the second and final goal for Juventus, guaranteeing the three points. The team conquered Friuli, they could taste the Scudetto but had to rely on Inter losing to take the title.

As such, Inter were having one of their most difficult matches of their entire season. Undeniably, the Lazio team managed by Alberto Zaccheroni back then, were looking to secure a spot in the UEFA Cup and were determined not to let Inter get all the three points at Stadio Olimpico in Rome. The Inter side that contained the great Ronaldo, and managed by Hector Cuper had the lead twice, thanks to Christian Vieri and Luigi Di Biagio. Lazio equalized twice through Karel Poborsky with assists from Stefano Fiore, before they secured the win when Diego Simeone and Simone Inzaghi scored the goals that broke the hearts of Interisti everywhere.

As a result, Juventus won their 26^th title, but this one was special. Winning it on the final day of the season after the leaders for the majority of the season,Inter, were defeated also losing the chance of winning their first Scudetto since 1989. The loss also meant Roma moved into second spot after they beat Torino 1-0, thus Inter dropped to third. It was also the season of the ‘miracle’ of Chievo Verona who qualified for the UEFA Cup in their first season in Serie A.

“Lo scudetto piu’ bello della storia della Juve” and “La grande rimonta” became legendary expressions for Juventus after winning their 26^th scudetto. As a result of this last day title win the rivalry between Inter and Juventus intensified.

The championship of 2004/2005, similarly to the one of 2001/2002, have one of Serie A’s most exciting finishes, culminating in a very much anticipated derby match in week 35, between Milan and Juventus.

As a matter of fact both teams were chasing the Scudetto having had a relatively successful season. This time it was the 8^th of May, the day when both giants clashed at the San Siro, both with the clear mission to win the derby and essentially the title. Anything other than three points would mean second place.

The team of Juventus, managed by Fabio Capello took the lead with the amazing bicycle-assist from the captain Del Piero leaving Trezeguet with a simple opportunity to score the opening goal, and so he did. However, the Milan side, led by Carlo Ancelotti included the legendary trio Paolo Maldini, Kaka and Andriy Shevchenko, continuously threatened Gianluigi Buffon but were unable to find an equalizer. On the whole, Juventus proved to be better and won the match thanks to David Trezeguet’s simple header.

In addition to this, Juventus won two of the next three fixtures which helped them lift the 29^th scudetto – despite the stripped titles due to the ‘Calciopoli’ scandal. Milan were also guilty to a lesser extent of similar offenses, and thus did not inherit the 2004/2005 Scudetto. To make things worse, this season is also remembered by Milan of the infamous defeat against Liverpool in the Champions League final.

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