AC Milan have had a really difficult season, and this has been worsened by the fact that several of their stars have not performed to the standard required.
From every perspective this season, Milan have struggled. From the viewpoint of the management, their summer investments haven’t really worked, whilst their two coaching appointments have not blossomed.
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From the coach perspective, his team have not been able to show the football that he wants – which was an issue from Paulo Fonseca as well – and this harms his own credentials, as well as his own future. In that case, very much a double edged sword.
We then can look at the players, who have been sub-par almost across the board, and this is probably the biggest talking point of the season so far.
When going through this Diavolo squad, you can probably name just a few players who have actually been at the level required, or maybe near it: Christian Pulisic, Tijjani Reijnders and Youssouf Fofana lead as the obvious contenders in this picture.
After that, it becomes beyond challenging to actually name players who have consistently had a positive impact on the team – Santiago Gimenez and Kyle Walker maybe could be added here, but including them in this narrative, if you want to call it that, feels slightly unfair, given they (and others) arrived just a month ago.
Then, you have to look to the stars, the big three, the ‘franchise’ players: Rafael Leao, Theo Hernandez and even Mike Maignan can fit into this group too.
Starting with Rafa, the Portuguese star has been unable to provide consistently, and whilst he has shown occasional moments of brilliance, he has, frustratingly, been below his own standards so frequently.
Whilst his numbers are not that bad, we are no longer talking about a young winger still acclimatising to a new league. No, now we are talking about a seasoned talent, that has not followed the path that everyone hoped he would when he claimed the MVP award a few years back.
Perhaps, his downfall can be linked to that of Theo’s who has also been below the standard. In recent years, his career trajectory has been rocketed – he cemented himself as one of the best left-backs of a generation, with consistent brilliant performances.
This season, he has often looked dejected and demotivated, and this has made his performances fall way below what is required, expected and wanted. As a result, his near €100 million price tag has dropped to €30m, and he will no longer be getting a €7m per year extension. A sad fall from grace.
Finally, we can look at Mike Maignan and his issues. Similarly to Theo in a way, the Frenchman has been one of the best goalkeepers in recent years, but this season it could not be further from the truth.
Whilst he has had some huge performances, he has made too many, without being too harsh, silly mistakes, that mean he cannot really be classified in that elite bracket of goalkeepers. Unfortunately, they have often come in big games.
It boils down to the efforts of the whole team, of course, but this season looks likely to be one without a European place, a near-crisis position for Milan considering the work in recent years. However, it could be the wakeup call that is needed for everyone, from the stars to the high-level staff.
If you think the stars can turn things around sooner, and improve before the end of this season, consider placing some bets with Parimatch on Milan to win games until the end of the season.
