Italian Supremacy?

After playing second-fiddle to AC Milan and Juventus both in Serie A and on the international stage for much of the past decade, Inter are emerging as the predominant power in Italy, and look poised to caputure the Champions League title for this first time in.... well, for the first time since it's been called the Champions League. Inter Milan are currently undefeated in Serie A, 7 points ahead of second place Roma, and a full 10 points ahead of 3rd place Juventus. At this point, it seems a formality that they'll win their second-consecutive scudetto, with this year's title carrying a whole lot more legitimacy as Juve is back from their Serie B banishment and the other rivals aren't carrying any point penalties from the match-fixing scandal of '06. Moreover, Inter are many punters' favorites to win the Champions League, although a round of 16 pairing with Liverpool, despite the Reds' dire status and poor form, cannot be taken lightly. So why are Inter Milan thriving? Put concisely, it's because of all the South American stars that litter the line-up.

Check out Gregory Sica's good piece on this: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/gregory_sica/01/16/inter.milan/index.html

It's no secret that many of Europe's premier clubs rely on South American talent to get them to elite stature, but Inter's lineup is shamelessly oriented towards Argentines and Brazilians, and why not? Argentina currently sit atop Fifa's world national rankings at the dawn of 2008, with hordes of European stars hailing from the land of the Albiceleste. Brazil needs no hype, as it's been widely known for decades that the finest players in the world come from Brazil. What's interesting is that Inter carry only 4 Italians on their roster. There's nothing wrong with not utilizing domestic talent (just ask Arsene Wenger), but it does provide for interesting debate and nationalistic discussion.

I say kudos to Inter Milan and Arsenal for combing the world for unique talents, and I commend them for the approach. The international flavor of Inter and Arsenal make them interesting cultural studies on the pitch, and the fact that the current form of each team is among the best in Europe is testimony to true global football.