Milan president Silvio Berlusconi's comments regarding the club's signing of Inter Milan winger Amantino Mancini intrigue me.
The Italian Prime Minister said he did not "understand" the loan deal, which will see the Brazilian stay with the rossoneri until the end of the season.
Perhaps 'Il Cavaliere' is still feeling groggy from his attack in December, but it is out of character for him to criticize a signing made by his trusty lieutenant Adriano Galliani.
Over the years, he has had his say on team selection and gioco (gameplan), making his feelings known to former coach Carlo Ancelotti about the need to play with two strikers, but that was generally as far as it went.
Berlusconi's rationale here was that Milan had plenty of playmakers in the Mancini mould but not enough people to put the ball in the net. This should not be the case, given that on the club's books are the likes of in-form Marco Boriello, Alexandre Pato, Filippo Inzaghi, the under used Dutchman Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and now the promising Ghanaian youngster Dominic Adiyiah.
Ronaldinho, meanwhile, has acted as both playmaker and goalscorer this season. Milan are third top scorers in Serie A, and despite Berlusconi's words, their problem does not seem to be putting the ball in the net.
Mancini has underperformed at Inter since joining from Roma in 2008, and did not appear to have the trust of Jose Mourinho. But a move to Milan may galvanize him, and he will certainly inject some pace into a Rossoneri side that is not the quickest ever to have graced the game.
He enjoyed his best years at Roma, despite not getting on with club captain Francesco Totti, and if he can rediscover anything like his old form, Milan may just have a player on their hands. Even if he does not excel, it seems a strange matter for Berlusconi to get het up about, risking cattiveria agonistica (nervous tension) in the corridors of power. It does not seem a huge gamble, given that Milan have not bought the player outright.
It is also odd that Inter are willing to aid Milan's title challenge. The rossoneri may trail them by eight points but there are still 17 matches to play.
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