Stefano Pioli made the decision to rely upon Charles De Ketelaere and Divock Origi for the game against Bologna, and it did not yield the desired results.
A piece in this morning’s La Gazzetta dello Sport starts with a rather striking sentence: ‘The Brussels Stock Exchange is officially closed due to excessive downtrend’. De Ketelaere and Origi played a match that was once again a summary of their season so far.
The playmaker seemed to be hiding as always and as always he didn’t show a moment of grit, and while it is understandable that there might be little disorientation after months on the bench, but it is unthinkable that the an attacking midfielder for Milan could create nothing, fail to link-up much with his team-mates and cause no problems with runs.
Origi instead remained on an island too, completing 9 passes in 70 minutes, with a cross and a shot on goal all that he had to show. Even when Rebic crossed well from the left – perhaps his best play of the game – Divock did not show up.
Pioli replaced both in the 70th minute, with De Ketelaere and Origi having played 1,800 minutes overall. Massimo Ambrosini, the former captain of Milan, said before the start: “The Milan boys have no alibi, they have to go out there and do well.”
At this point, it is natural to wonder what future the two will have at Milan. The forecast for Napoli is logical: both of them are likely to play very little or not at all against Napoli, and with the top four race on a knife edge Pioli will trust those he has more guarantees from.
CDK cost Milan €32m plus €3m in bonuses which means it is probable that Milan will give him another chance. Origi and the club, on the other hand, have made it known that they want to continue together but he earns €3.5-4m net per season.
Moreover, there are teams in the Premier League that could sign him either permanently or on loan, which therefore seems a logical hypothesis in the event that a separation is deemed best by all parties.
Finally, Aster Vranckx was a starter in Serie A for the first time, and though he didn’t play particularly well or particularly badly he did not stand out either. Milan have to pay €12m to sign him outright in the summer, with the management continuing to evaluate.
