Despite having scored the most goals of any team in the Premiership so far this season, Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger seems to be in hot pursuit of another striker or two.
21 year-old Congo striker Tresor Mputu is currently on trial with the Gunners, and Wenger looks set upon recalling teenage striking sensation Carlos Vela from his loan at Osasuna now that work permit restrictions have been worked out.

That is the request of Inter Milan coach Roberto Mancini after AC Milan star Ronaldo came out and said that Adriano "only needs help, protection, and to play". This was prompted by Adriano 's recent attendance at a training camp in his native Brazil in a bid to regain full mental and physical fitness.

In an interview with France Football (the bulk of which is only available in the print edition), Brazilian legend Socrates pulled no punches, ripping the hell out of not only Italian football, but also the Brazilian national team and it's performance at the 2006 World Cup. The guy is so frank, honestly, that you'd almost think he was drunk and just sort of venting his spleen.

•FIFA's latest rankings came out today and the top five remain unchanged, with Italy third behind Brazil and Argentina and just ahead of fourth-place France and Germany, who remain fifth. The rest of the top ten are: Croatia (!), The Netherlands, Spain, the Czech Republic and Portugal.

•Kaka to Arsenal?!

•It's about time for some more Adriano-to-Real rumors, don't you think?

Things are very different these days for the Brazilian strikers on either side of Milan. Ronaldo, for his part, is both no longer fat (Who knew it was just a glandular problem?) and also desperately needed by his club. Adriano, meanwhile, remains both fat and an afterthought, though he may get to play this weekend, thanks only to the fact that choices one and two could be rested after a week of internationals.

Roberto Mancini talked to the press this morning after Inter's early training session, and he was so refreshingly frank that you wonder if he didn't perhaps get a bit too much sun while they were in Sardinia last week.

Asked about Adriano's public appreciation of the faith the club has shown by not offloading him this summer (Don't count your chickens yet, Adriano.

Another summer transfer window has come and gone. Last August, we were salivating at the prospect of all of those Italian World Cup heroes coming to play in England for large amounts of dosh. Most of them were players from Juventus, yes, but we were told there would be an exodus. There wasn't.
This past transfer window that just concluded had the same hype about it.

Monaco under the guidance of Ricardo Gomes, goes on signing Brazilians. Next to forward Nene and defenseman Bolivar, the French league team bought in Italy another defenseman Adriano, who was raised in Gremio and belonged to Atalanta.

•The Azzurrini side for the upcoming matches against Azerbaijan and the Faroe Islands was just announced, and both Roma-owned Alessio Cerci and Fiorentina's baby Argie (with Italian heritage) Pablo Daniel Osvaldo have received their first call-ups. Osvaldo was expected to be in the team for the last round of U-21 matches but was injured, so an appearance in either match will mark his first Italy cap at every level (Cerci has U-19 and U-20 caps).

[If you're looking for information on the death of Gabriele Sandri and subsequent events, go here; the most recent post is on top. Inter-Lazio and Roma-Cagliari will be played on December 5th.]

•I'm not the only who thinks the new Azzurri kit is just foul, am I? Nice sheen there, Puma. What is this, 1977?

•Someone at Inter clearly reads this site because, check it out they're going to get Adriano help!

Ok, it's official: I feel sorry for him now. Even while he's busy over in Brazil, trying to sort himself out, the memories of how much Adriano sucks lately have lived on loud and clear in Italy. You know what's coming, right? For the second year in a row, the big Brazilian is the proud winner of the Bidone d'Oro, awarded annually to the Italian player who is most crap.

Really, the news today is nothing but PR crap: Adriano wants 20 goals (great, thanks for sharing), David Suazo never wanted to go anywhere but Inter (as if he'd pledge his love to Milan at this point), and the Tinkerman thinks managing Juve is like driving a Ferrari (super). If you're still awake, here are some bits of news that have actually happened, desperately unexciting though most of them admittedly are:

•Palermo have sold central defender Cesare Bovo to Genoa, yanking him right out from under Torino who had hoped to retain the player, either by extending the loan he was on with them last season, or by buying him outright.

Now that he seems relegated to fourth-choice in the Inter striker corp, the press are busy trying to find Adriano another place to play, even if it's not entirely clear his agent is taking any such action.

The latest rumors have him returning on loan to Parma, the team with which he earned his (severely waning) reputation as a dominant striker.

There's a long article in today's La Gazzetta (and of course it's not online) detailing the salaries of each team, from the high rollers like Kaka and Francesco Totti to the poverty-stricken trio on the bottom, Marco Mancosu, Jan Koprivac and Simone Iacoponi, all of whom make only €40,000/season.

Not surprisingly, Ricky Kaka tops the Table of Riches with an after-tax salary of €6 million, followed by The Great Totti who earns €5.

Just a quick post with a good Adriano compilation.
He's been out of form for quite a while now and is probably 5th in line at the Inter striker pecking order but this wasn't the case a couple of seasons ago. The tank was one of the top few players in the world for a brief period and I'm sure a lot of Inter and Brazil fans would be ecstatic to see him find that form again!

Guess what, kids! Adriano didn't turn up for training yesterday, which instantly send the rumor mill into a frenzy. He apparently called in to tell the club he was "feeling unwell," but got a bit elusive when asked for details and, given that it's Adriano, the obvious assumption is that "feeling unwell" actually means "so hung over I might die.

Breaking news: Adriano is still depressed. Such is the depth of his pain that he can't really train or play like he wants to which, one would think, explains he absence from the Inter team for much of this season. Of course, it would be a lot easier to buy the drama if he didn't bring it up only when he doesn't turn up for training, or is mildly called out by his gaffer for not training properly for more than a few days at a time.

•Man City are in the picture for Adriano again. Well, maybe anyway this time the interest is official, with no less an authority that Thaksin Shinawatra putting his name forward.

•More on the Davide Marchini saga: His agent/mouthpiece Lorenzo Marronaro is now suggesting Cagliari president Massimo Cellino is the problem in the relationship between player and club, since Marchini is not "the first employee to have trouble with Cellino.

Note: I'm traveling tomorrow. Will be back on task ASAP.

•For all intents and purposes, it's all set for Adriano to stay in São Paulo on a six-month loan. Thank Christ.

•Speaking of Adriano, Brazilian home-away-from-home Fenerbahce, once rumored to be a possible destination for the big man, is now being mentioned as a place that other big man might end up.

There's an interview in La Gazzetta this morning (most of which, of course, is in the print-only edition) in which Adriano details his own personal misery over the past two years, and pledges to "repay" Massimo Moratti for his support and assistance during the dark times. [Insert giant eye-roll here.]

See, all that drinking Adriano was drinking?

•Despite having weeks more time on training than one of the players chosen over him, Adriano was left out of Roberto Mancini's squad for tomorrow's Super Cup. Go ahead and laugh, you know you want to.

•Emerson really, really wants to join Milan, because he doesn't like living under the microscope in Madrid. Aw. Well now I feel bad for the guy.

•Everyone and his brother are proclaiming mad love for Gila. A memo must have gone out, or something.

•The FIGC are getting serious: Angelo Pagotto was just slapped with an eight-year ban after his second positive test for cocaine. Wow. If this was in the US, he'd have taken a very high-profile, very short trip to rehab and found Jesus by now, but since he's 34 already I guess that sort of penance wouldn't do much to help the career.

Just a quick post with a good Adriano compilation.
He's been out of form for quite a while now and is probably 5th in line at the Inter striker pecking order but this wasn't the case a couple of seasons ago. The tank was one of the top few players in the world for a brief period and I'm sure a lot of Inter and Brazil fans would be ecstatic to see him find that form again!

Just a quick post with a good Adriano compilation. He's been out of form for quite a while now and is probably 5th in line at the Inter striker pecking order but this wasn't the case a couple of seasons ago. The tank was one of the top few players in the world for a brief [...]

Just a quick post with a good Adriano compilation. He's been out of form for quite a while now and is probably 5th in line at the Inter striker pecking order but this wasn't the case a couple of seasons ago. The tank was one of the top few players in the world for a brief [...]

Adriano got the start today in a ragtag Inter side, put together mainly to rest people who needed naps ahead of the match in Moscow on Tuesday, and may or may not have scored the only goal (his touch was dubious, but whoever decides such things decided that his one hair redirected Figo's free kick). He had some good, instinctive moments and actually looked semi-fit, but was arguing with Mancini within the first 15 minutes, started to pout, and refused to shake the gaffer's hand when he came off just before the hour mark.

•Despite the wins over Georgia and South Africa, Italy have fallen to third in FIFA's ranking, behind both Argentina and Brazil. Curses! This has nothing to do with Brazil and Argentina actually being way, way better than the Azzurri rather, it's because big wins from last year have essentially expired in FIFA math, so Italy lost over 100 magic FIFA points last month and dropped off the top.

The other big match up this weekend (apart from Arsenal vs Manchester United) is the battle between Inter and Juventus! Although Roma is sitting in second spot, one place above Juventus, they are only one point behind. The Inter-Juve games have always been fierce and highly anticipated affairs and this is an especially important match. [...]

•For the Milan fans among you, this morning I stumbled upon a fantastic gallery of screenshots of all the refereeing errors to which your team has fallen victim this season. Go check it out, and get your righteous indignation on.

•Cristiano Riganò had a hat trick yesterday for Levante, leading them to their first victory of the season.

•Adrian Mutu, in addition getting a hole knocked in his head yesterday, has been diagnosed with a severe thigh strain and is expected to be out at least three weeks, missing two matches each for Romania (Bulgaria and Albania) and Inter (Reggina and AEK Athens). Three weeks ends just in time for Fiorentina's huge match against Inter on December 2; fingers crossed he'll be back for that one.

Ok, ok, I'll talk about it: Pato and Ronaldo each scored two goals in a Milan training match yesterday. ZOMG THEY'RE GOING TO WIN THE SCUDETTO! Ahem. Sorry. Nothing against the Brazilians in question but, as I said in the comments last night when Marco helpfully posted a link to the goals, it's a training match, for heaven's sake, against a few teammates and, given the absence of the entire team for internationals, a whole lot of youth players.

The international weekend was a busy one for Inter, despite very little actually happening in Milan. Most of the action took place in South America where, you may have heard, a whole lot of Nerazzurri players ply their international trade.

In good news, Inter captain Javier Zanetti became the most-capped Argentine player of all time when he captained his team in their 3-0 World Cup victory over Boliva on Saturday.

•The Azzurrini played the second half with 10 men in the freezing cold rain, but still managed to pull out a 1-0 away win over the Faroe Islands. The baby Italians dominated the match but left it late, winning on an 80th minute goal by substitute Nicola Pozzi.

•Sebastian Frey started for France today!

I'm not actually back yet, but since it's starting to look like an exodus of lumpy Brazilians is sweeping Milan, I figured I should make some time for a post. Just a few days after Inter and Sao Paolo agreed a loan deal for Adriano, the international press is all aflutter over the news that Flamengo have been authorized to talk to Ronaldo about a move to Rio.

After Portugal's victory over England in the quarter-final of the 2006 World Cup, English fans and the English media do what they do best, pinpoint a scapegoat, making it easier to target a source of blame. Instead of looking into any deep-rooted fundamental problems; Sven, McClaren, Brian Barwick, training schedules etc.
After Beckham in '98, P.

•We've suspected it was coming since May, and Alessandro Nesta officially ended his international career yesterday. Now that he's an old man of 31, he's unable to continue performing at a high level without more rest, and since missing Milan games isn't really an option, the Azzurri were bound to lose out. Though Nesta missed the World Cup through injury and the team have obviously been successful without him, it's still sad to see another mainstay moving on (and also to think of something who's 31 as "old").

Could someone explain to me, please, why Inter are clinging to Adriano? I understand there's always a concern about letting go of a young(ish) player with potential, and an associated fear that the deal will come back to bite you in the ass when he recovers his form elsewhere and makes you look like a fool, but COME ON. Apart from a good month or so after Christmas last season, the man has been rubbish for over a year, and is having a dismal preseason.

•Despite a weekend full of loan rumors and the Inter brass practically begging the Brazilian to take his unflatteringly snug Armani tops elsewhere, Adriano's agent today angrily insisted his client would either stay at Inter or be sold full stop. Apparently for some reason Adriano is opposed to the idea of getting out of the spotlight and going to rediscover his form with a team where he's already loved.

Milan may have done fuck all this summer (apart from signing an infant Brazilian who may or may not be the Second Coming), but they weren't just sitting around, twiddling their thumbs. No, sir! Instead, they were busy doing really exciting things like almost signing Thierry Henry, and dreaming about Adriano. So there.

According to the always-chatty Adriano Galliani, Milan were fully prepared to match the fee Barcelona paid for Henry and, in case you were wondering, "Henry would have happily come [to Milan].

Ok, this is actually getting sad. At last count, about 137 clubs from 14 nations have turned down the chance to sign Adriano on loan, and the big Brazilian has gone into serious pout mode, muttering about how unjust his treatment has been. According to Adriano, he deserves the chance to play because Inter owe him. Seriously. "When two years ago the team was doing badly and I was the peak of my powers, I certainly didn't dump them.