Inter Milan's Loss to Schalke and Why It Spells Trouble for Italy's Serie A

Inter Milan began their quarterfinal match with Schalke in a way fitting of a defending champion. Just seconds after the opening kickoff, Javier Zanetti stole the ball in his end, sent it to Esteban Cambiasso, whose ball looked to send Diego Milito clear in his first start since returning from injury. 

One of the best saves of the tournament was made when German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer left his area and his feet, clearing the ball inches before Milito's touch with a diving header that sent the ball 30 yards away from danger.

Or so it appeared. 

Serbian Dejan Stankovic bested the daring save with a volley that can only be described as sensational. Technique. Timing. Strength. Confidence. The volley from the center circle looked to be the shot fired from the San Siro to all UEFA participants, and as the ball crossed Schalke's defense, Neuer and the goal line, it announced that Inter Milan was back.  

After a slow start that saw Rafael Benitez dismissed just six months after replacing Jose Mourinho, Leonardo's attacking style had seen Inter climb the Serie A table and threaten AC Milan for the title, despite a loss in the derby. 

But as well as Leonardo's attacking system has worked out, the squad had given up 31 goals in 20 matches—not the normal style you'd expect to see from Serie A giants, nor the formula that the team flourished with under Mourinho.

Italian fans are used to seeing their teams score the opening goal. They've grown accustomed to the technical ability to dictate the pace of the game and tire opponents struggling to win the ball and equalize.

They've also suffered under catenaccio, in which the team's desire to score a second goal was shelved in favor of their need to prevent an opponent's first. Most of the time, the result was a 1-0 win for Inter. At times, a late goal would be deserved as the team tried to ride out too much pressure for far too long.

There weren't many screaming fans at the San Siro chanting wildly for Stankovic, knowing the game was over, that Inter would defend and hand Julio Cesar a clean sheet over the next 89 minutes and 30 seconds. 

However, there wasn't a soul on either squad who would tell you there were six more goals to come. The subsequent collapse was of epic proportions.

The lack of Lucio's presence, serving a one-game suspension, was a glaring weakness, but his Brazilian counterpart tending the nets would not have imagined five shots slipping behind him. While defending the crown. In the comforts of home.

Leonardo has his work cut out for him: chasing rivals AC Milan for the Serie A title;  chasing Schalke 04 for a seat in the Champions League semifinals; chasing the job done by Jose Mourinho; chasing the legions of foreign players who have opted to move to the English Premier League or La Liga as Serie A struggles financially.

Nothing warrants attracting the attention of the world's top footballers like success on the international stage of UEFA's Champions League. Juventus is still trying to recover from the millions of dollars lost due to missing out on the tournament after scandal. 

Long gone are the days of Zidane, Nedved and Davids creating while Italian defenders protect their goal. AC Milan isn't quite there yet, although the revenues brought in by selling season tickets and jerseys by Beckham and Ronaldinho have led to a bit of rebirth.

Futbol is a business. There's nothing more pleasing than discovering a gem of a talent in your academy and seeing him rise to greatness before your very eyes.

But if you haven't found Messi in your youth system, teams like Manchester United and Real Madrid have attracted the eyes of the world's best talent due to their consistent success in this tournament. 

With no Italian team in the semifinals, Inter can be filled with pride should they overtake their Milan rivals and win Serie A yet again. But Mourinho was brought in to get them to the next level. And having tasted that success, a trip to Old Trafford to defend their title would only generate further interest in Italian calcio. 

For that reason, Schalke may have erased more than Stankovic's brilliant volley.  They may have erased the memory of an Italian team holding futbol's most treasured trophy.

And that may take a while for Italy's Serie A to recover from.

Jason Miradoli

www.fcintersoccer.com