Gabbia-Thiaw partnership one of few positives for Milan after Atalanta defeat

AC Milan are currently in a very tough position in the standings, having lost the big game against Atalanta last night, but there is at least one positive to take from the game. Indeed, Matteo Gabbia and Malick Thiaw played very well together once again. 

It might sound strange to praise the centre-backs after a 2-1 defeat, but the fact remains that Milan conceded their goals on set pieces. In open play, meanwhile, the two did very well and stopped Atalanta on numerous occasions. They also complement each other well, which is nice to see.

Both were given a 6/10 in our player ratings, which was also the case in several of the newspapers, and this is a pretty good score given two goals were conceded. The successful partnership is of extra importance as Paulo Fonseca tried several different ones, resulting in stability issues at the back.

In other words, now that Gabbia and Thiaw have established themselves as the best duo, the defensive strength should improve as time goes on. As many points as possible are needed from here on, so finding the right duo was almost a must.

On a somewhat related note, this is also positive financially for Milan as Thiaw’s value decreased quite a lot after last season. He’s now living up to his potential again and that is very nice too see, even if Fikayo Tomori’s valuation might take a beating as a result.