The team to face Inter must be perfect, and Massimiliano Allegri has a big decision to make regarding his AC Milan starters.
Across most of the pitch, Milan have some easy choices to make. Whether it be in the back three, in midfield or even in the attack, most choices are straightforward. Of course, there is the odd one which is forced.
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However, the Rossoneri have several players who do not really require a second look at this moment. Not guaranteed starters, of course not, but close enough and in this form, why change for the sake of it?
A tough decision
At left-back, though, Allegri has a decision to make. Pervis Estupinan was the starter for most of the season, but a red card and an injury meant Davide Bartesaghi was called upon. The Italian has not given him a reason to revert. Now, a question must be answered; it is the only ‘real doubt’.
As Gazzetta dello Sport writes, the question is between inexperience and inconsistency, which MilanNews relays. Bartesaghi, as the younger of the two, may be less experienced in these types of matches.
However, he has never really alarmed the Diavolo, whereas Estupinan has a catalogue of errors. Allegri must choose, not on age, but on merit.
This is unfortunate.
Bartesaghi had a tragic first half in his last start. Then he came back in the second with a more than positive impact. It shows a level of maturity about the inconsistency every player faces at one time or another.
In my mind there is no question, Bartesaghi is the starter until such time Estupiñan can prove otherwise.
I love the spin that the Italian players get put on their performances.
“The Italian has not given him a reason to revert.”
Bartesaghi was atrocious against Roma and only some bad finishing saved us from being about 3-0 down in the first half. But because he was slightly less bad in the second half, that proves he should be starting? Give me a break. If Estupian had given that same performance nobody would be trying to put that spin on it. Glass is always half full if you are Italian.
Shoulder to shoulder and got shoved to the ground. He is going to be on the bench for a good while. End of story.
Bartesaghi should start. Estupinian needs to get back on form, he was abysmal in his last outing
I like what Estupiñan can bring but after his last performance I’m skeptical. It’s one thing to misplace a difficult pass or get beaten by a world class player, but what happened a couple weeks ago is a travesty. I’d go with Bart but I’m afraid he won’t be able to keep up with Dumfries and I can see him being exposed, this is where having Raboit back would be so helpful as he has the legs and technique to cover ground and help Bart. Honestly I’m worried about both wings, salad might struggle against Dimarco too.
It has to be Bartesaghi. I feel he give more assurances defensively and he’s another big body in the box as Inter love to lob corners.
We’re playing Inter, not Roma.
At this point I think experience trumps all.
Bartesaghi has been babied by the Milan fans, but his performances over the past month when Pervis was out has not been spectacular. If anything he’s been inconsistent, good half a game, poor in other parts. The only thing consistent is the lack of clean sheets. Only Mike against Roma saved every Bartesaghi outing for the past Month from having conceded at least 1 goal. Against Inter, we cannot afford that.
Pervis, for all the mistakes he made i the last match (2 big ones), just got back from Injury, and has been putting in the work over the last 2 weeks to get himself fit and match ready. With Rabiot back, we’ll have sufficient coverage for him on that left flank as well.
Against Inter, we can’t be inconsistent. I would pick Estupinan over Bartesaghi at this point.
Pervis also made a big mistake against Napoli and was consistenly beaten and allowed a field day for Politano to cross. In fact when Bartesaghi came in, we made a slightly better coverage of that flank.
Neither Estupiñan nor Bartesaghi are really good. They’re both good crossers but unreliable defensively and get easily beaten by wingers.
It’s a bit of a “pick your poison” type of scenario.
Wasn’t it telling that Allegri brought Pervis back immediately into the first team right on the back of an injury layoff? That should signal Allegri’s views on who he considers the starter.
Milan were on fire with Pavlo, Rabiot and Pervis combining brilliantly and getting stronger each game, until injuries de-railed that progress. At that point Milan were top of the league.
The big problem with Bartesaghi is he cannot defend…go back and watch his performances, particularly in 1v1, he gets beaten every single time, its scary. The Juve game for e.g, Conceicao ran circles around him and he was awful against Roma. He is a good option to have, as long as Pavlo is there to bail him out.
Pervis is worst than Bart when it comes to defend 😂, Davide at least can make accurate crosses
Your comment shows no example that Bartesaghi is good at defending. And as for the crossing, Pervis already showed he’s capable of that with that assist for our first goal of the season.
Any other excuses to pick Davide?