AC Milan will take on Lazio this evening and after two games without a win, they are desperate to turn things around. Speaking of desperate, Paulo Fonseca is set to make some pretty bold choices, as highlighted by Gazzetta dello Sport this morning.
As the pink newspaper states (see photo below), the Portuguese manager has decided not to change the formation despite cries for the 4-3-3. Instead, he will make some pretty bold selections as he’s looking to spark some life into the team.
On the eve of the clash, during his press conference, Fonseca was clearly more tense than usual as he dodged a few questions on the mercato and the tactical issues. Understandably, of course, as the start has been far from what he had imagined after a positive pre-season.
As mentioned, Fonseca is looking to give the team a boost and for that reason, he’s thinking about fielding Emerson Royal and Youssouf Fofana from start. Furthermore, in the most recent tactical tests, the likes of Theo Hernandez and Rafael Leao have been excluded.
The two stars were among the worst against Parma and above all, their attitudes were not appreciated by the manager who now is looking to make a statement. Filippo Terracciano and Samuel Chukwueze could thus be the replacements, with Christian Pulisic on the left.
Of course, excluding these two players could have consequences in the locker room, but it seems Fonseca is willing to take the risk – with the support of the management.
That will be great. Put our lazy players home and if you do that i will start respect you.
Exactly!
Leao has been lazy since he came to Milan, he should be benched for a few games if you ask me
Both Leao and Theo should have been sold and invest the money to new hungry players. These “stars” will never become great players or leaders with that attitude they have. They need to understand that they play for Milan and being lazy in 3 out of 4 matches has a price.
I think this is probably true, but the time to sell Theo for max value was this summer. Now Fonseca if going to be benching him, he will become unhappy and not sign a new contract. That means a sale for 25M-30M in 2025, down from 60-70M this summer. But you are right in that players who are not giving 100% need to be benched. It’s a lose/lose situation.
yeah right 25-30m because you value Milan players like sh*t
Absolutely necessary to show the players that they need to earn their minutes. Theo had zero motivation in Parma match and honestly shouldn’t start today.
Glad to see Fonseca might have the balls to drop the ones who don’t care about the team.
Give Leao and Theo a break, or you will end up not watching Milan. Pulisic was terible, Cukwatze also, RLC totally useless, Calabrija is in the key of all bad things for 2 years already. And you mention Leao. I mean if our stars have attitude and motivation issues is best to substitute them with sub par players that give their all. Welcome to midtable Milan.
To implement his thoughts in game he must have players who will do what he needs.
And that is playing defence.
The question is why Théo is not motivated? Two months ago he was excellent at the Euro. What happened? If this guy doesn’t care about ROI that’s a shame.
No player should need to be motivated by his manager. How about personal pride? You’re a professional. Go to work next week and tell your boss you don’t agree with the corporate strategy and this will be performing only half your duties. Let me know if he gives you a pep talk or shows you the door.
Ok interesting theory. If my boss doesn’t pay me accordingly based on my performances and asks me to do overtime, I’m just working without motivation until I leave. It happened to me. There is a competitive market, in football or labour. If you have skills and are underpaid, you go where you’re paid accordingly.
But I guess Jerry and all the people in charge in that unregulated and speculative business that football is today, Infantino, Ceferin, etc. are also solely motivated by personal pride.
Theo has been asked to work overtime? Show me a player who doesn’t want to play from start to end. It’s literally been two matches and Theo didn’t even start in the first match.
Stop with the overtime cr@p. What ever happens or doesn’t happen on the pitch, you ALWAYS blame the management. Ridiculous. Sure, they’re not perfect but if a player has zero interest in playing “like a pro” then he should start a youtube channel or something.
By overtime I mean being a model for Puma or whatever commercial they asked him to do. It’s probably in his contract but Jerry explained not long ago that they want to benefit from IP and likeness. Théo is now a famous player and Milan in some way is trying to exploit his football talent and his fame to make money but he shouldn’t ask for his share? The clubs’ revenues are increasing every year but the players’ revenues are not. Another casualty of having bankers at the helm.
So you actually know for a fact that Puma isn’t paying Theo any money for the commercials? What’s your source?
Just stop. Players play the game. Full stop. Want to blame Fonseca for bad tactics? Fair. But the only person to blame for Theo dogging it, is Theo.
Yeah, but unlike football you can just find another job. And you where hired “on a free”. Athletes have contracts. Clubs spent money to get them. They will need to spend money to get a replacement. It’s not just as simple as “you’re fired, next” or “I quit”.
Exactly. He can’t leave and is stuck. But we expect him to smile and give everything. So he’ll leave for cheap or for free and we’ll lose a world class player. Great management of human resources.
I know there are a lot of Americans here, just look at the Brandon Ayiuk saga this summer with the Niners.
man it always ruins your day whenever Milan wins a game lmao
Exactly! But he can still blame the owners and management for ruining his day.
yeah but they would be super motivated to work for De Zerbi who defends a r*pist right?
Who wouldn’t? 🙂
This is ballsy from Fonseca. That he is doing this is admirable, The TEAM comes first and the players have to show it in all phases of play . I have not liked all his decisions but I support him in this.
I support your move, let’s face it squarely, if it’s a loss without them I believe it will later get to a win and they will learn we don’t have to depend on them. We’ll get used to it. It’s called rotation. Bring in more futuro!!!
Of course all the haters who don’t understand that Rafa tried hard in both games and Theo is exhausted and is not a lazy player, will love this.
People who know better, like me, know that these players are not lazy; they are just off-form but are still our best bet for scores.
Seems like Fonseca is listening to the haters and is “punishing” our best players for supposedly lacking a positive attitude (although they are just not at their best, after the Euro and their late start to the off-season).
This is suicide and will backfire. Then, don’t complain once Theo and Rafa get fed up with all the unfair criticism nonsense, Theo doesn’t renew, and Rafa asks out. Then, without our world-class players, we can comfortably be a mediocre mid-table team that won’t even make the UCL.
It is interesting that in the Reddit for AC Milan in English, 90% of people are bashing Theo and Rafa and supporting Fonseca. However in X in Italian, 90% are calling Fonseca crazy and suicidal, and are supporting Theo and Rafa.
I know that my post will be met by criticism: “Rafa is lazy” “Theo was responsible for both goals against Parma” “Rafa passed the ball to Parma in the second goal” (that one is laughable; Rafa did make a mistake but Parma recovered the ball yards from their own box and advanced through our entire midfield and defense to score; how exactly is this just Rafa’s fault??? They also ignore how Rafa constructed 75% of our score in that game), etc.
Sure, sure. Bash them, do it. Bash me. But Rafa and Theo even off-form are still our best players. Terraciano is a joke. You’ll get your revenge over Theo and Rafa, and Lazio will beat us.
Overall I agree with you. I wouldn’t say that some people know better than the others because we all have different sources and opinions and we don’t know what is happening in Casa Milan.
To me, Théo isn’t out of form, he was barely making efforts. He’s probably fed up. He wants to be paid accordingly, he gave everything for Milan over the past years and isn’t rewarded yet. Zlatan saying « he’s happy » when clearly he’s not was a slap in the face. And he’s playing for a team with a cheap coach and lower ambitions than other top clubs.
I really don’t think that they will be benched. Maybe Rafa, but Theo, I don’t see it.
I read an interview about how, in Mourinho’s second stint with Chelsea, he didn’t rate many of his players and played with a small rotation. By the end, his players were too tired. So the following year, he decided to cut preseason from 6 weeks to 3 and a half weeks and felt that the players’ talent could get them to scrape a couple of good results. He ultimately got fired.
Theo and Rafa have not had a good preseason and might just not be up to speed as the rest of the team. Even though they played in international duty. They still had to take a vacation hence why they joined the team late.
But Fonseca seems like a good communicator with the players and IF they decided to bench it won’t be to send a message lol.
I’m not sure we can say he’s a good communicator with the players. Yeah he speaks well to the media, he’s a colourful character with his Zorro mask but that’s something else. The fact that Musah was publicly bashing him after the Parma game is concerning and if he did so, it’s probably a felling that the locker room shares, I don’t think Musah is a vocal leader.
yeah perfect theory for you who hate Milan because they sacked Maldini
go make a club called AC Maldini them
I found it ridiculous how this two players are judged so hard after only one game. Loftus for example is somehow allowed to have 20 bad games in a row before he has one where he scores (He is not doing very good in that one too besides the tap in goal). Leao and Theo carry this whole team and yet they are constantly critisized if things go wrong. I guess thats what you get when the rest of the team is mediocre and its all on you to make something happen. Well maybe Theo and Leao got sick from constantly carrying this team on their back while the management isn’t even thinking of bringing someone even close to their level to help them out.
The most accurate take of 2024!!!
RLC, Jovic, Tammy (thank god is only loan), Emerson (Bellanova/Kayode were there)… these players need to be axed and not our actual stars.
Theo and Maignan are being underpaid and that’s just a fact!
Completely agree. Leao and Theo being benched will make us look even worse than we have been. Insanity IMO. I foresee them having to bail us out in the second half.
Wise words… I completely agree… We replaced Pioli with a clown
First of all , I’m not a hater and I like Leao & Theo , and understand their importance to the squad. However, they are not doing enough for the team and by making the top two players understand how important the TEAM is by benching them is the most a coach can do .
All the others will understand he means business and is serious .
Truth is off the ball both have been very bad , no pressing , marking and not doing enough to make themselves available for the ball.
Let’s forget this Lazy talk that some have started here but let’s also be honest and say that they haven’t played to their best abilities with their best efforts, that’s for sure and plain for all to see. They have to do more also for the others to follow. There can be no primadonna’s in this side who are exempt from running and pressing.
This is what it’s about not bashing , if they want to be at Milan and be leaders then they have to prove it with application as well.
PS it’s not Fonseca’s fault that the management haven’t brought in a reserve player for LB , Terraciano is definitely not a LB.
Even though Leao creates most of our best play he also loses possession with selfish play in equal amounts and takes chances that would be better off passed to another player.
Same for Theo , his marauding runs are great when they come off but we are exposed. On the left time and again when he is no where to be seen.
Some people have short memories. Pioli benched Leao for a lazy performance in the Scudetto season…
I think dropping Leao and Theo is a wise move. Leao doesn’t often play with passion, he plays as though he is only playing for himself and not the team.
Well said.
Of course you know better,you’re Luigi for God sake!A cartoon!
“People who know better, like me” 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀
Yeah, Theo was exhausted AFTER TWO MINUTES OF PLAYING against Parma. 😀 😀 😀 😀 😀
He must have been out of breath already after shaking the opponents before the kick off. He probably needs a 6-month vacation in the Bahamas.
Lol….
Gotta be real flexible to suck your own —— that well LOL
I stop reading after “people who know better, like me”
🙂
Good on him I hope he does. Currently they’re no better than any others. I don’t see no stars
If anyone defend them saying they are “tired” due to Euro, it can’t be an excuse, because they are not the only players who played in Euro, which they didn’t play until last day anyway. And some Spanish and English players, who played in Euro until last day, still can perform good in this beginning of season. So it is clearly about the work rate. And both players shouldn’t think they can perform in off-form or in lazy way, and then get away with it, like happened during Pioli era, where he tend to be “selective” to bench some players due to 1 error or 1 bad performance, while some like Theo and Rafa were simply excused when they did the same. The team need to come first, above “superstars”.
So, I totally agree with Fonseca for showing that no one is untouchable. And for me, Theo doesn’t deserve to be vice captain until he change his behaviour. Parma game was not the only game he behaved like that. Remember last year in a game he dived and dramatically act as if he were badly hurt, didn’t want to stand up, but then Millan got conceeded from his side. Then he do could simply stand up after the goal. That behaviour is not a captain’s material. And Rafa doesn’t deserve to be 3rd captain as well, if he can shoo the fans when he scored 1 goal, after 10+ bad games and got critized by them. They are being paid professionally, and do need to show better behaviour and work rate. If they wanna get paid higher, show the club and fans that they deserve it, or asked for being put in transfer list. Don’t behave like a kid who is reluctantly doing something just because his parents doesn’t allow him eating ice cream, hypothetically.
You make good points and I don’t like Theo’s hotheaded behavior that earns him yellows for dissent and even reds. I don’t like it when Rafa shoos the fans. However this can be dealt with by a beloved coach sitting with them repeatedly and talking frankly with them about it. Benching both against a difficult adversary like Lazio at the Olympic is asking to lose the game. It will backfire. We need points now. It’s not the time to be doing revengeful punishments upon our “favorite” scapegoats. Yes, have long talks with them, but don’t bench them, at least not yet after two games.
And yes, players usually come back off form when they play the Euro or the World Cup and then need vacations. You say that some players in other teams didn’t have this problem. Each player is different. Some are more resilient than others. But I do feel that Theo and Rafa are exhausted and they get scapegoated too much.
Sure, you can single out games where Theo and Rafa were unproductive or even damaged the team. But have you forgotten the numerous games, much more numerous, when they helped the team?
“Benching both against a difficult adversary like Lazio at the Olympic is asking to lose the game. ”
Nope. It’s asking people to start playing instead of loitering. To man up. Do what they’re been paid for.
This might be a risk. But no matter the consequences i agree with the coach. If you dont fight on every ball and in all the 95mins. Then you should be watching the game, not from the bench but from home. I prefer losing with fighting spirit, then losing the way we lost against Parma.
Forza Milan always ❤️🖤
This guy is another idiot. Milan has an ever-growing collection of fools, clowns and idiots – cardinale, furlani, moncada, ibra, fonseca ….. only good at improvisation with no clever plans, no targets, no vision …… may they all leave milan in peace and go somewhere else far away ….
Are you so scared of these truths?
So Theo and Leao got benched because they are “lazy”. But what about RLC? The guy doesn’t do jacksh*t or beyond lazy and Fonseca keep playing him.
I have said many times before. Sell both when their market price is high because they will not get better. They will remain talents and never grow up. Invest the money in new hungry players instead!
Théo is arguably a top 3 left back in the entire world when motivated. He was not always playing at his best because he’s a paramount player for the team and had to play 90 minutes twice a week. Watch his Euro again. But if you only expect him to be the new Roberto Carlos or Maldini, then you’ll disappointed yeah. Should Milan sell every player in the team that is not playing like the second coming of Pelé or Zidane? Or should it keep its best players and try to build around them? What do you think is the best strategy to win consistently?
Yet we still haven’t received an official offer for Theo or Leao….
And? Did Manchester City received official offers for Haaland? Did Real Madrid received official offers for Vinicius? I’m not sure what your point is.
Fonseca is panicking making drastic changes for a third match in a row. Seen it last season already.
Now we’re going to watch Emerson and Terracciano down the flanks. That should be interesting.
We’ve had 3 RBs but they decided to loan out Kalulu and flush the funds down the drain for Emerson instead of getting a deputy LB. There was Spinazzola available on a free but hey what do I know about market opportunities. Now we’re going to watch Terracciano there.
Another masterpiece from the management and their non existent recruitment strategy.
Exactly! You ae one who gets it.
The title this year is already lost,Inter will do even better than last year.They are too strong for this serie A right now.So either sell these 2 primadonas or pay them what they want to play for good.I had enough of them playing good 2 games against Genoa and Cagliari and being trash in the big games.Bench their asses with all costs,we dont count and have no intention to count for the title aniway!
Ništa od svega toga dok se ne uvede mogućnost NOVĆANIH PENALA ZA LOŠU IGRU I NEZALAGANJE !
There’s a reason season after season Theo and Leao are linked with the biggest clubs in Europe and yet no offer ever comes….
Unless there are no tactical changes, there’s no use of benching or playing anyone.
When the full backs are playing along with wingers, it’s impossible to track back 90mins with same speed.
No one speaks about the midfield who are not seen anywhere near to defend the ball.
its also easy to cut off passing lanes, get a steal and make one pass and score a goal
Switch to 4312 and bench Leao is the right way forward. We cannot have a lazy winger in 4231. Twin striker is the way forward.
We should have sold Leao and looked at players like Chiesa and Krava. Leao is the worst player you will see in every match. Yes he assists but the overall contribution to the team is very poor.
If Leao will be more objective in his play, believe me Milan’s attack will be very deadly, Leao is an exceptional talent, he only needs a coach that can handle him properly, and I think Fonseca is beginning to understand that.
I have no problem with the message Fonseca is trying to send, BUT…
RLC was just as insigniicant against Parma as Leao and Theo – why does he get a pass? Does Fonseca need more minutes out of him to realize he’s no 10??
yeah, i dont get keeping RLC in, he didn’t have any moments that stand out in a 10 second clip like they did but he’s just consistently far from the play…
THere is no risk for the coach, I’m willing to bet Ibra told him to bench them for longer once the game ended…plus there are 4 futuro players there. showing them being talented isn’t enough and they have to prove it every week is a way better message than, you will eventually take this for granted.
A lot of things goes into this decision of the coach we may not know. Its very normal for old players in a team to discard instructions of new coaches because they feel established but the point here is there is no sign of growth from Leao and Theo and its a concern to is all as fans. Until they buy into the coach’s philosophy, they can never give their best. In as much as it will hurt Milan, they are also on the verge of destroying their careers.