Seedorf scores his first goal for his new club

This summer, former AC Milan midfielder Clarence Seedorf signed a two-year contract to play for the Brazilian club Botafogo. The contract is said to be the largest ever signed by a foreign player to play for a Brazilian team. Seedorf, who enjoyed a long and exciting career at Milan, scored his first goal of the season in Botafogo's win against Atletico Goianiense yesterday. Hopefully this will be just the first of many goals as Seedorf pursues his career in Brazil. 

Above: Seedorf displays the Botafogo flag

Below: One of my all-time favorite goals by Seedorf

Highlights from three different recent important matches that Milan won by a score of 3-0

February 28, 2011: Milan 3 - Napoli 0

April 2, 2011: Milan 3 - Inter 0

April 16, 2011: Milan 3 - Sampdoria 0

Another nice goal by Seedorf and one by Gattuso

In case you missed this one--

April 16, 2011: Milan 3 - Sampdoria 0

Or this one--

March 5, 2011: Juventus 0 - Milan 1

What Milan have been up to lately

Fiorentina 1 - Milan 2

My third favorite Milan goal of the season

Clarence Seedorf's winner against Chievo Verona. This goal pulled Milan to within one point of first place and represents the high water mark for the season.

Match report: Milan 1 - Chievo Verona 0

Clarence Seedorf (above- being chased by his teammates after scoring the game winning goal in stoppage time) helped Milan pull within one point of Serie A leaders Inter.

On the unfortunate side, David Beckham (below) was kicked in the face and then later injured his achilles tendon. He joins the many injured Milan players-- Nesta, Pato, Bonera, etc.

Most importantly, however, Milan are now only one point behind Inter.

Match report: Real Madrid 2 - AC Milan 3

• Goals scored: Raul 19', Pirlo 62', Pato 66', Drenthe 76', Pato 88'
• Goals disallowed: Thiago Silva 86'
• Raul's goal: Milan keeper Dida had just caught a soft shot. Then he brought it down and bounced it off his knee straight to Raul. Raul did not miss.
• Why Dida was even playing: Dida started for the injured Storari. Storari had replaced the injured Abbiati. Abbiati had replaced the injured Dida.
• Pirlo's goal: Pirlo shot from 35+ yards out. The ball grazed Iker Casillas' fingers but went in. The shot was so surprising that the television announcer did not realize that the ball had gone in the net. The Madrid home crowd did go instantly silent, however.
• Pato's first goal: Ambrosini put a long pass in to Pato. Casillas rushed all the way out of the penalty area but could not get to the ball. Pato went around Casillas and did not miss. This was Pato's first ever Champions League goal.
• Drenthe's goal: Madrid had many, many more corner kicks than Milan. This was one of them. Madrid took a short corner and Drenthe drilled it along the ground and into the net.
• Thiago Silva's goal: Milan had a corner. Ronaldinho took it. Thiago Silva or a defender headed it in. The referee disallowed the goal for no apparent reason. Much yelling, pushing, and shoving followed.
• Pato's second goal: Seedorf (who had an absolutely fantastic game) lobbed a short pass into Pato who was wide open on the right side of the box. Pato calmly volleyed it in.
• What this match teaches us: I have absolutely no idea what this match teaches us. However, this may have been the most exciting, satisfying match I have ever seen.

Above: Thiago Silva celebrates the victory.

Below: Another post-match scene.

Highlights are below:

Match report: Milan 1 - Bologna 0

• Goals scored: Seedorf 75'
• Bologna's game plan: To send no players into Milan's half of the field; to play defense and only defense; to achieve a 0-0 draw.
• How Bologna's game plan worked: Quite well, except for one brief moment late in the second half when they actually sent players forward to try to score. Milan immediately scored on the counter-attack.
• Number of Milan players who hit the goal post: 2 (Pato and Inzaghi)
• Number of Milan players who found themselves with the ball, unmarked, eight feet away from goal with no goalie in sight but who managed to shoot the ball well over the crossbar: 1 (Gattuso)
• How Clarence Seedorf finally scored: Seedorf got the ball. He ran at the defender. Then he ran around the defender. After that, Seedorf ran at the goalie. Finally he kicked the ball past the goalie and into the net.
• Last time before today that Milan scored a goal in Serie A play: August 22, 2009
• Photo I wish I could find: Bologna's Nicola Mingazzini playing most of today's match with his head bandaged.
• What this match teaches us: Only the very young or the very old can score for Milan this season.

Match report: Olympique de Marseille 1 - Milan 2

The group stage of the Champions League started yesterday. Milan's first game was in Marseilles. Below is the important information:

• Goals scored: Inzaghi 28', Heinze 49', Inzaghi 74'
• What happened: A terrifying rainstorm...a deranged sea of fans in blue and white chanting and jumping up and down...a Milan goal in the first half on a nice pass from Seedorf to Inzaghi...wave after wave of attacks by Marseille in the second half (including the tying goal)...Milan looking tired and half-full of panic...a completely unexpected and fantastic goal by Milan -- again Seedorf to Inzaghi.
• What this match teaches us: Seedorf rules one half of the known universe. Inzaghi rules the other half.

AC Milan - the four best goals of the year

Seedorf plays the ball through to himself in the penalty area off a defender's chest...Zambrotta shoots and scores from about seven miles out...Pato dives to connect with a header...Kaka scores from maybe even farther out than Zambrotta...These are possibly the greatest AC Milan goals of the 2008-2009 season. The most amazing part, however, is that they were all scored in the same game! (against Lazio on September 21, 2008). The other amazing part is that Zambrotta's goal is the only one he has scored all year.

Milan 1 - Juventus 1

Milan tied Juventus 1-1 today, pretty much ending whatever incredibly remote chance there was that they could catch Inter and win this year's Scudetto.  The tie also means that Juventus still have their own (remote) chance of catching Milan for second place in Serie A.  Seedorf scored for Milan early in the second half, but then Iaquinta tied it up only a couple of minutes later.  The most important statistics are these, however:

• Number of loud explosions set off by the fans during the match: 6.
• Numbers of times Inzaghi was whistled for being offside: 4

Photo above: Paolo Maldini, right, playing his last match against Juventus before his retirement, chases Juventus' Amauri.