After starting the Serie A season with just two points from three games, doubts are in place about Paulo Fonseca’s ability to lead AC Milan forward. Things must change quickly, but Carlo Pellegatti has questioned if change can, or will occur, due to the style of the coach.
Looking at Milan’s current position, things can, surely, only get better. That is until you look at the fixture list. A return to San Siro awaits the squad when they will face newly promoted Venezia. Then, the Rossoneri host Liverpool, before a Derby della Madonnina.
A hellish return after the international break.
After the opening that the Diavolo have had, improvement is needed and fast. Unfortunately, that is not just the case on the pitch. Off it, there have been questions about the collectiveness of the squad, and their support for the new manager, highlighted most by Theo Hernandez’s and Rafael Leao’s absence from his cooling break team talk.
Ultimately, a lot of noise is surrounding the Milan team at present, and Fonseca must quieten it quickly. If he fails to do so, his future at the club will be questioned, more than it already is.
When speaking to Pressing, Pellegatti spoke about the situations involving Theo and Leao, whilst also taking stock of the managerial situation – his words have been relayed by Milan News.
“Do you completely rule out that it was Ibra who invited Fonseca to leave the two out? Ibra was very angry after Parma. Was Ibra supposed to be in Rome? I totally agree. Ibra, come back now! Right now the Swede is too important.
“He is the frontman of the club. Fonseca is in trouble, Ibra has to look the players in the face. His presence is essential. They told me that Ibra could extend his holiday until the game with Venezia. Eh no, Ibra’s presence is fundamental. The players and the coach also need the presence of the club.
“Milan’s problem is not Leao and Theo, but that in the last 12 games they have conceded 24 goals. The six goals taken this year are all the same: cross from the left and the player anticipates Milan’s central defenders. Fonseca thought he would set up a dominant game, but I don’t know if he has the players to do it.”
We have no midfielders for possession-style… Bennacer-Fofana double pivot which is the most obvious paring hasn’t been used in 3 games… Reijnders is way more effective in CAM for us in this style than regista and for love of god bench RLC, the most 1-d midfielder I have ever seen since banter era…
Musah and Zeroli are too young, so is Liberalli… we need at least 1 CM/CDM and 1 CAM… Lewis Ferguson and one, preferably Italian, midfielder who can hold the ball and pass.
RB is in bad shape, most goals I think 5 out of 6 came from enemy left-side… Luiz Diaz and Vinni wing… Kayode and Bellanova would have been way better and would have saved international spot…
Problem is not midfield in my opinion, there we can find a fit. The problem is in the defence. You cannot play possession football and invite the press if you have Tomori and Pavlovic.
Of course he can’t. The midfield is mid table Serie A. You can’t dominate with these players. Best midfielder is still Bennacer, with half a working leg.
Ibra’s presence fundamental? Well, he is not the coach. The only presence that is fundamental is the coach. If Ibra was fundamental, that would be the same as saying that Fonseca cannot get this team going on his own, which is to say that he lack competence.
It is not the case that Fonseca does not have the right kind of players. Rather the players do not have the right kind of coach. And THAT is on Ibra.
Maldini had aura and charisma, Ibra apparently only talk…
This is what happens when you don’t buy based on football. Juve just bought Douglas Luis and Koopmeiners…. This is where you need to be at but we will never be under Redbird
It’s not about the names. It’s about whether or not the players you bring in fit well together. That’s where a sporting director steps in.
The executives were adamant about the Moneyball strategy, Scaroni said “we don’t need Maldini anymore” and Moncada the video scout has been promoted. It’s a strong allegiance toward trading and this is where Milan is now. I guess there won’t be a movie with Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill about this team…
🙂
of course it’s about the names….stop thinking like Cardinale….lol. If you want quality, you bring in quality players. if you pay 25m for Fofana, you get Fofana, if you pay 50m for Koopmeiners, Ugarte……you get a world class midfield player.
The myth of moneyball is toxic. You can bring in 3 average joe midfielders, thy may well gel together nicely and play well together, but their ceiling of ability and performance is not going to be that of world class midfielders.
Atalanta doesn’t have stellar names outside of Koop who they sold and who was a nobody when he came to Bergamo.
Yet they beat Liverpool and Neverlusen and won EL – something completely out of their orbit. no 50mil signings there.
It’s not about the names, again. It’s about a vision, scouting and a Sporting Director to tie it all together.
A good coach helps too.
Ederson, Scalvini, Lookman plus a host of seasoned names as well as two good keepers, Atalanta had a very good sqad. let’s be honest, the Atalanta victory was excellent but a one off. Leverkusen were never a top side, they were on the crest of a wave, Liverpool had horrendous injury problems. Still it is what it is and Atalanta deserved it.
It’s about buying players who are ready for that next level who have excelled. Lots of top clubs wanted Koopmeiners, I’ve said multiple times Milan should at least look to recruit the best from within Serie A, thats what we used to also with Donadoni and Massaro, we don’t, we look at players who may make it, who are in a dip of form or off the back of an injury…any little reason that makes them more attractive economically. Instead of just going out and staying out claim that we need a top no6, so Koopmeiners or Ugarte is our man.
I get your point that you don’t just sign a name, but unfortunately if you want quality, you buy quality, and that player already is well known. You don’t often get a Pato, Kaka, Thiago Silva and even then those players were well known in South America and parts of Europe
I agree 100%.
I don’t think these fairy tales about saving money and spending little would work if Milan didn’t go through the banter era, there is some kind of PTSD now, especially in some American fans that don’t know that Milan was such a prestigious team because of Berlusconi’s spendings and aggressiveness on the market.
The previous management demonstrated that you can build a strong core, like Atalanta, with young promising prospects (and even Leao, Théo, Tomori, etc. were relatively expensive at the time) but at some point there is a need to invest. In the salary cap or better recruits.
Juve is just throwing cash around, like usually and hoping something sticks. Ofc we aren’t doing any better, we’re just throwing lower amounts.
Proper scouting and team building is a science and not a lot of people have mastered it.
Juve is throwing cash around like any UCL winning team of the past 30 years.
Milan doesn’t have proper scouting nor team building scientist so I agree with you that not a lot of people have mastered it.
And for ever team that was/is throwing money around to win the CL there are 5-10 teams that throw money around and don’t win it..
Think Milan probably has the same scouting since Eliot took over.. they hit and they miss, the last two years tho we lack proper direction. They bring in players for style A and want them to play style B. Meanwhile style C is what our “OG” players were best at.. so there’s absolutely no balance anywhere
we aren’t covering our basis. we need 4 players, but they don’t want to spend or misspent on worthless players: Tammy, RLC, Emerson…
RB is a huge miss, I think they haven’t got 1 fullback right. Theo was pure Maldini move.
no regista and allowing RLC to continue playing in rossonero jersey… Most 1d player! if fit and Ibra allowed Cardinale to spend something, Lewis Ferguson would really work wonders… quartet of Bennacer, Fofana, Reijnders and Ferguson, with Zeroli, Musah and another regista as subs is a midfield and not this half-baked mash of glob…
lack of ambition with ST… no one was asking them for Gyokeres, even though it would solidify their claims, but again no one expects that from them, but there were way more interesting players like Ommoridion, Retegui, J.David…
Throwing cash around doesn’t mean sh*t without a purpose though. Case in point PSG and Chelsea. Madrid does it better – but who has their bankroll?
Giuntoli is tying it together better than Ibra so far. They brought Motta quickly. We brought Fonseca.
He probably is. Ibra isn’t doing anything at Milan. He’s a mascot.
Doubt motta would fare much better with our bunch of primadonas
Doubt it. The players need someone they can stand behind. Fonseca hasn’t been it. Motta is an exciting prospect.
But they’re throwing cash at proven quality..Douglas Luis and Koopmeiners were wanted by a host of clubs.
All we need is a holding midfielder. A Tonali type player and RLC should be our utility player not a starter. Try Liberali and Zeroli.
The mercato was long and drawn out. Unlike last year where all the major moves took place early, some very big pieces arrived quite late. The squad will take time to gel. But, I don’t think that Fonseca will be able to pull of his advertised style of play early on. A high press may be sexy for the newspapers and pundits, but it requires alot of tactical awareness and a high work ethic from the players. Theo and Leao are not built for a “high press” system. They are counter attacking geniuses. That is why they were benched last game and only had good results when they came on to “save the day”. Fonseca has advertised a high press, so he needs the players that are willing to do this or he needs to change to a system that accentuates the traits of the players that he actually has instead of wishing for players that he doesn’t have.