The three-man defence has certainly helped improve AC Milan’s stability after a terrible start to 2023, but there are also signs it helps play going the other way too.
MilanNews recall how Milan have not conceded a goal since the one Lautaro Martinez scored for Inter in the first half of the game at the beginning of the month as the matches against Torino, Tottenham and Monza all produced 1-0 victories.
Of course that constitutes a much-improved defensive effort and that will have been the first objective for Stefano Pioli, however in those games there were also hints that the three centre-backs can each offer something different in the possession phase.
For example, Malick Thiaw has shown particularly in the last two starts that he is a fantastic distributor of the ball especially to the flanks, which led to the opener against Spurs. With Mike Maignan still not back, he is able to ping passes to the onrushing forwards and wing-backs just how the goalkeeper did.
Pierre Kalulu meanwhile is returning to his level in the role of right-hand man, halfway between full-back and central defender which allows him to tuck in for protection or push up the flank to provide support, as seen in his excellent performances against Tottenham and Monza.
Also important is the return of Fikayo Tomori after the injury as he is generally confident on the ball and is often not frightened to stride out of the defence. In addition, he has been known to pop up with goals from set pieces or scrambles too.
terrible article… look at the Monza game, missing a player in midfield meant that Monza easily had the upper hand in midfield and had far more possession. Unless you practice a 352 for a long time, it is just a negative impact on possession and attack like Sacchi mentioned