Tijjani Reijnders and Youssouf Fofana were previously undroppable for AC Milan, but a report has outlined how they ‘are no longer themselves’.
As La Gazzetta dello Sport reports, Paulo Fonseca’s Milan was supported by its two midfielders and they played together every four days. They were always among the best players, showing consistency despite playing so often.
In February they are not the same. Reijnders has not scored in five games and seems less involved offensively, as Joao Felix occupied his spaces of choice. Fofana always seems tired and in the most important match of the month – Milan-Feyenoord on Tuesday – he even ended up on the bench.
The Reijnders puzzle
Under Sergio Conceiçao, Reijnders has stopped playing as an attacking midfielder and it is no coincidence that since Joao Felix has been there he has been less involved in an attacking sense.
The comparison of touches per area, shown below, says that there is a difference in the way he is playing. It is not huge, but there it is noticeable and shows he is now getting on the ball in a deeper position.
Reijnders under Fonseca scored five goals in the league, three in the Champions League and one in the Coppa Italia. With Conceiçao, visually, he does not give the same impression and it is logical because of his role.
However, there are some encouraging numbers too. Reijnders under Conceiçao produces an average of 0.23 xG per game, up from the 0.17 he had with Fonseca. Of course, he has been struggling lately: 0.04 vs. Feyenoord at San Siro, 0.03 vs. Verona, 0.01 vs. Empoli and 0.04 vs. Roma.
Against Feyenoord in Holland and in the derby, on the other hand, he had good or excellent numbers: 0.23 and 0.72. This is certainly a curiosity because Reijnders had a very high figure (0.66) also against Inter in Riyadh. It might be that he is a derby player.
Tijjani also has good numbers for interceptions: under Fonseca he recovered 2.05 per game, with Conceiçao it rose to 3 with peaks in Feyenoord-Milan and Milan-Inter, evidently his best recent games.
Fofana’s fluctuations
Conceiçao benched Fofana against Feyenoord on Tuesday night. The reason? He seems tired, and here we need physical data that only Milan possesses.
The field data can help to understand what Conceiçao asks compared to Fonseca. Fofana under the old coach was almost a deep-lying playmaker: on average he completed 42 passes per game and created 0.75 chances. The vertical connection with Reijnders was a puzzle for many.
With Conceiçao, it’s different: the passes have dropped to 30, the chances created to 0.4. There is a clear reason: Conceiçao’s style is less possession-based and the attacks have to be quick rather than slower build-up.
Fofana has probably been the best summer signing, and it is worth asking how much of him is lost in a system with five players more attacking than him, six including Theo. The Frenchman is obliged to protect the defence first and foremost, leaving him less involved in possession.
Tijani 😲, fofana 😏🤔 can’t say much too much physicality less technicality and mentality. He is loosing all right now, he’s stress, confuse, tired, and unfocused and lack visions. Always loosing possession anyhow and let his role guard down as DM. He needs guidance, rests, and poper mentoring.
No mention by Gds with regards Italian football being in decline under these American investors making the league a retirement home for some as well as rejects for others.
Mabe there making more money with Italian football being an museum piece for people who pay there money to be apart of the experience right under the noses of everyone😉
Italian Football is in decline because of the villagers running it, trying to hold on to power and money instead of actually developing and marketing the league to keep it relevant. Has nothing to do with the Americans, you Einstein.
Every opportunity to improve the TV rights deal gets butchered. Every opportunity to market the league in new markets goes balls up because the people in charge are utterly clueless. Markets like India, with over a Billion people don’t have access to the league. In England you have to do actual investigative work to figure out that Serie A is available on OneFootball App.
We missed out on Two CONSECUTIVE World Cups due to poor talent development and structures in place to promote youth to clubs and STILL the league has done @$$ about it outside of trying to abolish the growth decree – and only to make more money, not to actually grow anything.
A government that doesn’t even work with clubs to help them build effing new stadiums to increase revenues and attract better talent to make the league more attractive to foreign investors. Because outside of Americans, NO ONE ELSE WANTS TO INVEST IN THIS LEAGUE, JACK …
So get your facts straight and stop yapping like a Chihuahua.
The coach is trying to destroy Reijders our best midfielder by far.I have not seen what Felix has done that he can be a starter against our best performer. I questioned the substitution being made by the new coach. We would have won the Milan derby but for some unintelligent substitution which made lose Benancer a player that normally brings stability to our team
Best performer? Pulisic is that, and easy, no contest.
“The coach is trying to destroy Reijders our best midfielder by far.”
Sure. Of course. Because that coaches always try to do. 😀 😀 😀 😀
It is wrong to play Reijnders as MC but who else will play? It is not like Conceicao is keeping Rodri and Kante on the bench and playing Reijnders out of position. There is no one else, Terracciano looked so bad in 5 minutes against Inter.
Add Pulisic to this list of players declining under Conceicao. And who has gotten better??? Nobody.
Pavlović and Jimenez. You can add Tomori but that was short lived
This isn’t a puzzle. Drop the underperforming Felix, put Reijnders back in behind Santi and add Bondo/Musah next to Fofana. That’s how you fix the Reijnders issue.
As for Fofana, just rotate him more often. You have the two above mentioned mids to bring in and out
Now, this is where the problem is, Milan doesn’t have a proper number 6.
I said this before we signed Fofana, that he’s not a DM, and he’s not good at tackling, and heck I said even Bennacer is a better tackler than him, and that we also need a destroyer like Amrabat or Palhinha, but everyone came for my jugular.
Look, Fofana is Kessie, they are box-to-box midfielders who love to use their physicality. The only difference is, Kessie had good tacklers like in-form Bennacer and Tonali to play with.
Currently, with the sale of Bennacer, we absolutely have no midfielder capable of delivering clean tackles per match.
That is why Fofana will always be exposed for being the player that he is.
1 coach is already hard. Plus stupid involve from director and advisor,
We’re all behind you Yousuf n Tijani