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For the second and final day of the Audi Cup, the winners of yesterday's games were pitted against each other in a friendly final while the losers met to decide third place.

The first game of the day was between Boca Juniors who had lost 2-1 against Manchester United and AC Milan who were routed 4-1 by home team Bayern Munich. After being used to seeing Milan concede the first goal since the start of pre-season, it was refreshing to see them take lead for once when Thiago Silva deflected Pato's shot/cross into the back of the net just a few minutes before the half-hour mark. Unlike their previous games where they were flat, the Rossoneri had a lot more vivacity on the field, especially in midfield where Gattuso and Ambrosini (and Pirlo later on) always did their best to come back and help out in defense. Unfortunately, the Italians weren't able to hold on to their precious lead. Four minutes before full-time, Lucas Viatri scored a splendid header from a desperate cross to tie the game. The game was decided in a shootout which Boca won 4-3 as Pirlo and Pato both missed their shots while Insua was the only one to be stopped by Storari.


It's another disappointing result for Milan who are still winless in the pre-season. The team is way too old and you get a sense that some of the veterans feel entitled to playing-time instead of trying to earn it. Milan's lone bright spot of the game was Onyewu who had a good outing. He seemed a bit in over his head in his first few games but he's slowly coming around. It'll be interesting to see how he progresses.




In the second game, Bayern Munich and Manchester United - sporting their new ugly-ass Power Rangers away kit - could only come to a goalless draw as both teams hit the woodwork on their best scoring opportunities – Gomez in the first half, and Berbatov on a overhead kick also in the first half. Bayern had most of the possession during the first half which took place almost exclusively in United's territory. Although, the situation balanced itself in the second half, the English champions couldn't really find their rhythm until Wayne Rooney came on and had to rely on set-pieces such as corners to really bother Bayern's goalkeeper.

Finally, the Germans won the cup by defeating United 7-6 on penalties as Evra and Evans both missed their chances – the former due to a lack of confidence, and the latter because he wasn't supposed to be there in the first place. Van der Sar's intimidating tactics didn't seem to bother Bayern's strikers since only Pranjic – with a poor attempt – was stopped by the Dutch goalkeeper.

Next for United is a final friendly at Old Trafford on Wednesday before the start of the season.



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It's going from bad to worse in the Rossoneri camp. Since losing Kaka to Real Madrid and long-time manager Carlo Ancelotti to Chelsea, Milan's management team has done nothing to appease a group of fans that's getting restless. Millan's pre-season results hasn't improved matters since their are now 0-4 in their last four games. After going winless in the World Football Challenge which took place in the United States, Milan returned to Europe only to be rolled over by Germany's Bayern Munich in the Audi Cup.

The home team took the lead early on in the game via Thomas Fuller. Instead of waking up the flat Italians, the goal only seemed to demoralize them before the 15-minute mark. Munich easily dominated Milan by applying a sustained pressure in midfield, leaving Pirlo no space to maneuver. In that situation, Ronaldinho and Pato were both isolated in front and had to come back to get the ball themselves. Once they did that however, Milan had no one in front to send the ball to, and they were caught in this vicious circle for most of the game. Despite their total domination, Munich had a lot trouble to extend their lead in the first half. Most of that had to do with Mario Gomez wasting chance after chance. Being relatively unfamiliar to the Bundesliga, I wonder if he's their equivalent to Emmanuel Adebayor – he may score a lot but it takes a lot of opportunities for him to put the ball in the back of the net.

After a long period during which it seemed like both teams were participating in an attack-vs-defense exercise with Bayern attacking and Milan holding on for dear life, the Germans finally got their second goal when substitute Bastian Schweinsteiger erased three defenders before firing a long-range shot that ended up inside the bottom corner of Marco Storari's net. Pirlo reduced Bayern's lead one minute later by converting a distant free-kick which slipped through Hans-Jorg Butt's hands. The goalkeeper seemed certain that he would punch the ball over his net, the ball simply went through his hands instead.

Not to be discouraged, Bayern added two more goals before the final whistle. First, Bayern Munich II striker Saer Sene – with the help of Muller – completed an attack that started from a goal-kick that went over Kaladze's head to put the score at 3-1. One minute later, Sene returned the favor, helping set up Muller for his second goal of the game. The referee whistled shortly after the goal, and just like that Milan is looking at a date with Boca Juniors tomorrow while Bayern will play against Manchester United.

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After Real Madrid's successful bids to get superstars Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo last month, the Nou Camp stayed eerily quiet, proceeding to make only one depth-related move by bringing in Inter's Maxwell to replace Sylvinho. All that changed this past weekend when the blaugrana completed a blockbuster move of their own, swapping striker Samuel Eto'o along with midfielder Aleksandr Hleb for Inter's Zlatan Ibrahimovic and signing the latter to a 5-year, €46 million contract.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Samuel Eto'o, Inter Milan, Barcelona
Who's the winner of that deal? Inter or Barca?

One of the few who survived Laporta's “purge” at the end of the disastrous 2007-2008 season, Samuel Eto'o has been the subject of transfer rumors ever since Guardiola came on board. Often painted as a self-centered individual, Eto'o stunned many of his critics by finishing second in the Pichichi trophy race as well as setting up several goals for his fellow teammates namely Thierry Henry and Lionel Messi. On the football side, it's hard to see why the Nou Camp would get rid of their most prolific scorer especially since the three strikers had incredible chemistry last season. On the business side of things however, Eto'o's contract was set to expire at the end of next season, so it made sense to get something for Barcelona to get something in return especially since the Cameroonian would be looking for a nice paycheck once his deal ended.

So, Laporta sent Eto'o to Serie A's Inter and got Zlatan Ibrahimovic in return. It's hard to say who is the winner of that swap. Although Ibrahimovic has the build of a perfect striker (big, strong, adept with both feet and head), his reputation as an egotistic player precedes him. There's no telling how his attitude will clash with Guardiola's team-first mentality. Ibrahimovic also has the tendency to disappear in big games, especially on the European stage where goals have been difficult to get for the Swedish striker. Obviously, there'll be more space for him now that he'll perform alongside the likes of Messi, Henry, Xavi, and Iniesta. Still, you never know...

Winger Hleb was thrown into the deal, but in his case, it's simply a loan. A bench-warmer for most of the season at the Camp Nou, Hleb will hopefully find more minutes in Italy. With Luis Figo taking the retirement route, he'll fight with Mancini and Quaresma for a spot on one of the wings.

Elsewhere in Italy, AC Milan surprised the entire world when they announced the signing of American defender Oguchi Onyewu. The hulking player – a free agent at the end of the 2008-2009 season - was looking at several options after a brilliant performance in the Confederations Cup, and Milan was surely an attractive destination. With Maldini out of the picture, Gooch's competition for a spot in the starting line-up will be the experienced but injury-prone veterans such as Nesta, Kaladze, and Favalli. If he performs well in training, there's no reason why Leonardo will keep him on the bench. Furthermore, the Rossoneri will need all the fresh legs they can get since they'll return to Champions League action this coming season.

In England, Manchester City have continued to make headlines with their constant chasing of players. Their latest acquisitions are two African players, both from Big Four club Arsenal – striker Emmanuel Adebayor and defender Kolo Toure.

Emmanuel Adebayor, Arsenal, Manchester City
Adebayor looking desolate after missing yet another goal

Unhappy at the Emirates since last summer, Adebayor had a disappointing season in 2008-2009, scoring only ten goals while missing seven weeks of action due to injury. His move to Manchester City will probably be a relief for him and all the fans who found him overrated (there's no telling how they'll feel once Van Persie gets injured once again and they'll find themselves relying on Bendtner). Although he was Wenger's first-choice striker, his propensity for missing an inordinate amount of goals far outweighed his rare moments of brilliance such as his goal against Villareal in the Champions League. With Robinho, Tevez, Santa Cruz, and Bellamy already at City, you can't help but feel that their front line is getting a bit crowded (though Robinho is admittedly a winger). You have to wonder which one of those guys will be ready to assume bench-warming duties since they all were starters at their previous clubs (except for Tevez who is still starter-quality). Click on the video below for Adebayor's first interview after his signing.



In defense, City's failed efforts to sway John Terry forced them to find another option. In comes Kolo Toure. The Ivorian central defender is far from the best but he is definitely a step up for City and will allow them to push Kompany up to midfield. As for Arsenal, you have to wonder if there's any way they can hang on to their players. It's back to square one for Wenger who had signed a central defender to strengthen his backline. Although with the return of Senderos, Toure won't be missed much. Still, you have to have a certain level of depth to survive in the Premiership.
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