Tuesday, 16 June 2015. AC Milan communicates that head coach Filippo “Pippo” Inzaghi has been sacked, without explaining whether flirting with Barbara Berlusconi – AC Milan's owner's daughter and member of board of directors – has been a reason why...
After just one year in charge, Filippo Inzaghi (aka Pippo) has been dismissed by Silvio Berlusconi-owned AC Milan (he was informed a week before the official statement from the club). The handsome-looking former striker of the club was thought to had have an affair with the young and provoking daughter of Silvio Berlusconi, Barbara, but rumours had been dismissed by all the parts (AC Milan included).
Filippo Inzaghi - aka Pippo - looking for a new job
Apart from the gossips regarding Inzaghi's love affairs, his record as a manager is rubbish, the Rossoneri – as AC Milan are frequently called – finished the 2014-2015 season in 10th place on Serie A's table, one of the worst results ever. This result alone could justify the divorce from the club.
Tuesday, 25 November 2014. AC Milan and its coach Filippo “Pippo” Inzaghi have realeased a note saying that no flirting occurred between Barbara Berlusconi – AC Milan's owner's daughter and member of board of directors – and the club's former star.
“Barbara Berlusconi and Filippo Inzaghi have instructed their lawyers to take legal action against all the media who report the news of an alleged relationship. The news is in fact false and totally invented.” says the note issued by the daughter of AC Milan's owner, and by the handsome new manager of the team.
Barbara Berlusconi with Filippo Inzaghi, widely known as Pippo
The official denial was provoked by a number of articles appeared on Italian gossip and sport media, suggesting that something happened between the 41-year-old manager and the 30-year-old executive of AC Milan. Executive, and daughter of AC Milan's owner Silvio Berlusconi, to be precise.
Wednesday, 25 March 2014. During a meeting with MPs from the Italian region of the Marches, Silvio Berlusconi stated that maintaining the football team has a cost of 50m euro a year (£42m or $69m), which is a bit annoying, given the results.
During a gathering at Villa Grazioli, his residence in Rome, Silvio Berlusconi couldn't help talking about the AC Milan, at least with the supporters of the rossoneriamong a selection of members of parliament representing his party Forza Italia.
When AC Milan was successful: Berlusconi with coach Ancelotti and captain Maldini Photograph: New Press/Getty
Apparently one of the milanisti said “Mr President, you should do something, I am so sorrow that such an important team is in such a situation” hinting at the fact that the club is virtually out of all competitions and AC Milan seem to be free-falling.
Tuesday, 11 March 2014. As her father is not allowed to travel abroad, Barbara Berlusconi joined the AC Milan team in Madrid, only to see them heavily defeated by Atletico (4-1).
Barbara Berlusconi tends to get excited by football matches
So as her father was not able to travel to Spain, Barbara Berlusconi was in charge and represented the family (apropos, did you know that her parents finally divorced, last month?) and management of the uber-decorated team at the Vicente Calderón Stadium, when Atletico Madrid resoundingly slapped the rossoneri and consequently eliminated the Italian side from the Champions League by winning the game 4-1.
Monday, 13 January 2014. Barbara Berlusconi's call for “urgent change” after yesterday's defeat of Berlusconi-owned football club AC Milan results in the sacking of head coach Allegri.
A victorious Barbara Berlusconi, AC Milan's CEO (one of the CEOs, actually)
The casus belli for the firing of the manager? A bombastic Sunday evening 4-3 defeat by bottom of the table Sassuolo (the side is just one point away from the relegation zone), with Sassuolo's four goal all coming from 19-year-old Domenico Berardi. What a shame for one of the most successful football team in the world, following yesterday’s loss the team is stuck in 11th place with 22 points only, 30 points away from leader of the table Juventus.
Saturday, 30 November 2013. Nope, Adriano Galliani will not leave AC Milan, and the football club team owned by Silvio Berlusconi will have two General Manager, Galliani and Barbara Berlusconi.
Silvio Berlusconi (left) watching an AC Milan's football game with the one of the club's CEOs' Adriano Galliani (right), and friend Flavio Briatore (centre, of course)
AC Milan's CEO Adriano Galliani was “seriously damaged” by the allegations made by the club's owner's daughter – Barbara Berlusconi – about his incapacity of creating a winning team and keep the books in order. And he was so cross about the situation that he released an interview saying he was about to leave the football club, after more than 27 years.
But a Solomonic Silvio Berlusconi decided to try and make peace between the two, invited the friend for dinner in his villa in Arcore, and gave a sop to (apparently) both contender...
Friday, 29 November 2013. AC Milan's vice president and CEO Adriano Galliani leaves the football team owned by Silvio Berlusconi, due to Barbara Berlusconi harsh criticism.
“I suffered a serious damage”, said Adriano Galliani, good old friend and business partner of Silvio Berlusconi, saying that the “generational replacement” within the team AC Milan should be done, but it has been carried out without the “duly elegance”.
Adriano Galliani and Barbara Berlusconi, at a football match
His problem is none the less than Berlusconi daughter, Barbara Berlusconi, even though her name is not on the lips of the visibly cross manager.
“I went to Madrid this summer to take Kaka without an appointment” said Galliani in an interview today, “and as I went in August 2010 to take Ibrahimovic Barcelona president Rosell returned from vacation he had planned on purpose, with his whole family.”. Nobody understands why such an internationally admired manager has been being treated in this way, is the point. Even Chelsea manager (an former Inter Milan's coach) Jose Mourinho said that “Galliani is the most important manager of AC Milan”.
Saturday, 9 November 2013. Barbara Berlusconi seems to be taking control of AC Milan, as her father Silvio meets Vice President of the team for lunch at Arcore's Villa San Martino, possibly to kiss him goodbye.
AC Milan season hasn't been a triumphal march so far: the football team is ranking 11th in the Italian Serie A table, the side have won only one of the five matches played in the Champions League so far (last week Barcelona beat them 3-1) and the talented striker Mario Balotelli has tuned out to be more of a nuisance than a winning goal scorer, collecting much more yellow cards than goals (the ratio is a disheartening 9:5). That's why a take over of the club might be under way by Silvio Berlusconi's family, more precisely by his daughter Barbara Berlusconi (a member of the board of directors since 2011). The coup could lead to the axing of vice-president (loyal man and good old friend of the former Italian prime minister) Adriano Galliani, head coach Massimiliano Allegri, problematic player Mario Balotelli, and god only knows who else.
Saturday,
February 23, 2013. Silvio Berlusconi breaches the electoral silence
just to declare that he reckons Sicilian Mafia is less dangerous than
Italian Judiciary. Or the other way around.
«The
Italian Judiciary is a Mafia, they are more dangerous than the
Sicilian Mafia,» says Silvio Berlusconi,
on a day when political issues are banned from the media by the
“Electoral Silence Rule”. Another quip destined to find a place amongst Berlusconi's quotes.
Berlusconi greets Galliani, as he arrives to Milanello on his helicopter, in order to spur AC Milan and slam Italian Judiciary
Actually
it looks like a “premeditated scoop”, as usual, since a friendly
journalist put the right question to the former Italian prime
minister, totally out of context (Silvio was in “Milanello”,
where he arrived on a helicopter, in order to greet AC Milan's
player, on the eve of the Milan's derby against FC Internazionale).
«And
I say it» will follow on the ineffable Silvio «knowing to say
something huge». Result: Silvio get headlines everywhere (starting from our blog, sigh! :-( ).
Some
might wonder about the ranking within Silvio Berlusconi's scales of
values, where Italian Judiciary seem to score less than Sicilian
Mafia, and dictator Benito Mussolini seems to enjoy quite some
credit, from the right-wing politician.
Here's
the script of the interview... pardon, the monologue of Silvio
Berlusconi in Milanello (you can find the video on our YouTube channel):
«...because
here in Italy, I have been attacked in connection with the
bunga-bunga, which is an operation of deception, defamation, which is
supported by nothing. In fact nothing came out of it. They made
150,000 telephone interceptions. Without discovering a single crime.
And continue with the proceedings, which have been reported by all
foreign newspapers, where the judiciary is a serious matter whereas
here in Italy it's a Mafia, more dangerous than the Sicilian Mafia.
And I say it knowing to say a big thing.». A big thing, and not really a funny one, Mr Berlusconi!
Monday,
February 18, 2013. Silvio Berlusconi suggests that AC Milan's coach
Massimiliano Allegri should take care of Barcelona's striker Lionel
Messi man-marking him, making clear that presidents (like him) don't
meddle with tactics, but they do fire managers.
Lionel Messi, the menace
While
giving an interview to Italian radio RTL 102.5, Silvio Berlusconi –
AC Milan's president and owner – talked about the tough game his
team will face on Wednesday, when they will play Barcelona UEFA
Champions League in San Siro (recently signed Mario “Bad apple”Balotelli
will not play, not being on the EUFA list for the competition), and
said that “It will be very difficult to beat them” and “my
suggestion is that [Lionel] Messi is man-marked.”. You cannot let your hair down, with players like him.
In the
following day the former Italian prime minister also suggested the
name of the defender who should take care of the Barça's (nickname
of the Catalan side) Argentine Ballon D'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year, the midfielder Sulley Muntari.
Wednesday,
January 30, 2013. After being slammed as “bad apple” by AC
Milan's owner Silvio Berlusconi only a couple of weeks before,
footballer Mario Balotelli wears the red-and-black shirt for the
first time.
Super Mario Balotelli
Former striker of Inter Milan and Manchester City and Italian National football team's player Mario Balotelli is travelling to Milan today, as hundreds of texts and tweets anticipated in the previous days.
A
jubilant Barbara Berlusconi – member of AC Milan's board of
directors and Silvio Berlusconi's daughter – declared to Italian news agency ANSA how the team could manage to make a major hit by acquiring from British football club
Manchester City the talented Mario Balotelli, while her father – in
mid January – said that the young striker was a “rotten apple”
(alluding to the young talent's sometimes problematic behaviour) who could "infect any group or team, even AC Milan" and
there was no interest in him.
Silvio: "Rotten apple"
In Silvio's words: "No one from my
club has held any talks with him, and neither [Vice Executive
President and CEO Adriano] Galliani nor I has identified him as a
transfer target.". The
AC Milan's management seemed also wary about spending 20 million euro
(£17.2m or $27m) in order to sign the player of Ghanaian descent (here's the Mario's page on Wikipedia).
Well,
in the world of football it is a widespread (and somehow
understandable) practice to deny any interest in players when a
negotiation is on course, but did Silvio Berlusconi really have the
necessity to call Mario a “rotten apple” and say that he is prone to "infect" his team, only in order to
apologise the day after?
Barbara: "Major hit"
Sometimes
it looks like if the former prime minister of Italy just love to say
things that well soon need any apology, perhaps in order to get exposure to
the media twice: when he says something nasty or rude, and when he
makes amends, playing good cop/bad cop all by himself. Have a look at Silvio's quotes, to get an idea... Massimo Moratti - the president of AC Milan's derby rival Internazionale Milan - said to journalists that the signing of Mario "Bad Boy" Balotelli will be "useful to Berlusconi in many ways" hinting at political motives. Forecasters state that the player's transfer might contribute to the former prime minister's People of Liberty party's polls with 2 percentage points in next month elections.
Tuesday, 1 January 2013 (Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God). Waking up in the morning of the first day of the new year, Silvio Berlusconi finds out his Twitter account has gained 60,000 followers in one night.
@Berlusconi2013 Twitter account, before the miracle
It took some time for Silvio Berlusconi to get involved in the fast growing social media Twitter, being overtook by a generally traditionalist fellow politician, Pope Benedict XVI, with his @Pontifex, and competitor #1, member of the Senate of Italy and prime minister candidate Mario Monti, with his @SenatoreMonti.
But when he went into it, he did it with his usual vigour.
Starting in the beginning of December 2012, the account @berlusconi2013 had been attracting around seven thousand followers, until the new year's eve miracle: in one magic night Silvio's fan on Twitter grew to over 70,000. It's not a scandal, just a remarkable event.
According to some sources, 70 per cent of the... 73,504 fans (update: 4 January, 10:54 GMT) is a fake, and 80 per cent are South American and Arab accounts – perhaps not very interest in the political events of Italy. How many of them are women? Couldn't find any data about it, but we bet it's more than a few...
Pato and Barbara Berlusconi smile on Twitter
The former prime minister of Italy's Twitter account launched also a kind of “I don't vote for the Left” campaign, by introducing a @iononvotolasx user and ionovotolasx.com internet site (currently not available). These links seemed to have disappeared in the most recent hours, replaced by the ForzaSilvio.it link (“Go Silvio!”).
But The Kight is not the only member of the Berlusconi family to have discovered the tweets: in the meanwhile, also Silvio's daughter – Barbara Berlusconi – appeared on Twitter, publishing a photo just to prove that her relationship with former AC Milan's footballer Alexandre Pato is still on (even though her father sold the player to Brazil's Corinthians).
Some think that Silvio might be totally unaware of what's going on, and the initiation to the twitterati could really be a gift from the founder of the “Silvio ci manchi” (“Silvio we miss you”) club, the tycoon official fiancée Francesca Pascale.
What would be of the President (he has always been president of something) without his women?
(Update: On 4 June 2013, at 13:52 GMT, the Twitter account @berlusconi2013 has 59,290 followers. At the same time @Pontifex has been occupied by a Francis, apparently a migrant from South America. Where has Joseph Aloisius - aka Benedict XVI - gone? Anyhow, the account has now 2.5m followers... Finally, Barbara Berlusconi's last tweet dates back to 11 August 2012.).
Thursday,
December 27, 2012. AC Milan footballer Stephan El Shaarawy refuses to
cut his hair, notwithstanding the fact that Silvio Berlusconi – the
team's owner – allegedly asked him to do so.
Stephan "The Pharaoh" El Shaarawy's hairstyle
Nicknamed
Il Faraone (The Pharaoh), Stephan El Shaarawy is an Italian
footballer of Egyptian descent playing for AC Milan, known for the
ability of scoring goals, as well as for his weird hairstyle, which –
apparently – is annoying the club's owner and current president,
Silvio Berlusconi.
All
this according to the site Al Arabiya News,
which – in turn – quoted a local Italian newspaper as source of
the news.
El
Sharaawy – who is currently Italy top of the league Serie A's best scorer, with 14
goals – is AC Milan's “new Ibra”, according to Barbara Berlusconi, daughter of the team owner, member of the club's Board
of directors and girlfriend of the fallen-from-grace striker Pato, meaning that the 22-year-old striker is as talented as
the Swedish Zlatan Ibrahimović is, who was sold by AC Milan to the
French PSG last year.
Other
stories emerged, as the former prime minister already ask defender
Philippe Mexès and midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng to change their "disturbing" hairstyles. To some extent, they agreed to lower their cockscomb,
whilst the Italo-Egyptian forward apparently dug in his heels.
Silvio "The Knight" Berlusconi hairstyle
The
Italian newspaper (La Provincia di Varese) cited an
hairdresser (Sebastian Muscillo) who used to work for AC Milan as
well as Turin's Juventus FC, saying that the former Italian prime
minister tried to force El Shaarawy to cut his hair.
The
request of Silvio Berlusconi was first addressed to the young talent
(whose father is Egyptian, while his mother is Italian) when he first
signed the contract with AC Milan, as the president told him not to
get rid of the “exotic” hairdo as soon as possible.
Silvio
Berlusconi seems to be quite allergic to hairdos and combing stuff,
for some reasons...
Saturday, April 2 2011. The aftermath of Milan's football derby. Berlusconi jokes about his bad memory. And women, of course.
On the night of April 2 AC Milan – Berlusconi's football team – beat its rival Inter Milan 3-0. AC Milan is leading the table, Inter is trailing. After this victory the probabilities that AC Milan will win the Italian Championship rise considerably. Therefore the Italian Silvio is in really high spirits, when the journalists gets to interview him.
Berlusconi loves to tell jokes
One of the reporters asks the Prime Minister about AC Milan's coach: “Does he resemble [former AC Milan coach] Capello or any of the great trainers of the past?”. AC Milan President Silvio Berlusconi replies “I don't know. I'm old. My memory is getting bad”. And then he goes on “This morning I was chasing my secretary, because I wanted to lay her on my desk, and she said to me «Mr President, we did it already, two hours ago». And I said to her «You see, the problem is my memory». If you write about this, you are a bunch of...”. He does not end the sentence, but everybody (reporters from sports shows on channels the media tycoon owns) understands that this time they are requested to keep the funny story for ourselves.
Actually the journalists, who usually are craving for spicy jokes of Berlusconi, almost managed to censore this one. One of them, a woman says to Berlusconi: “Cut! This one not, this one has to be cut” and, in the end “No, no! Not this one! Don't worry, President”.
And it almost worked, until April 21, when somehow the joke appeared in TV, on the Michele Santoro's AnnoZero, not exactly Berlusconi's favourite. And the "Fatto Quotidiano" (The Daily Fact, a Internet magazine) loaded the video onto YouTube. Looks like somebody wanted to make sure most of Italian population can laugh about the amusing anecdote.
