Antonio Conte was heavily requested by AC Milan fans in the summer, but the club opted for a different direction. That decision backfired, and now they have got the next best thing, perhaps a better thing.
Milan fans were quite clear with their demands in the summer. With Stefano Pioli leaving the club, the Rossoneri had to move forward in the coaching department and appoint a winner, so when Julen Lopetegui was mentioned, the reaction was understandably frustration.
The reaction to Paulo Fonseca was not much better. A coach that did not fit the demands of the fans, but a better option than the Spaniard. Whilst his football was frustrating and results were often below the required standard, there was a level of respect for the coach, but this could not be enough to save him.
So when Sergio Conceicao’s name reappeared, the Diavolo swarmed at the idea. With many believing that he should have been the summer alternate to Conte.
Now that he is through the door, and brought silverware back to the Rossoneri shortly after it, fans are back believing in the project.
As Gazzetta dello Sport writes, Conceicao is ‘a Portuguese Conte’, a coach not afraid to wear his heart on his sleeve. The new head coach is similar in ‘how he relates to the group and how he lives games’, which are some of the key traits of the now Napoli man.
Of course, there will be frustrations over how long a deal took to get this sort of manager, but there can be faith in the fact that the right outcome eventually prevailed.
There’s a key difference. Conceicao doesn’t have a recent history of leaving a club in shambles after a couple of years.
Conceição is a better coach than Conte. If we look at Conte’s record he can only win the league when his teams are only playing for one title. He does poorly in the UCL and Europa league and he only has one style of play.
So tactically Conceição is a better coach than Conte. Conceição is flexible and he often always gets his substitutions right which changes the game drastically. 442, 433, 4231 and 352 are all formations Conceição has used in games to make his team win when he sees something wrong.
Fans are right to be angry with Management.
They should have brought Conceicao in during the SUMMER.
Lol talking like he is the first choice. No he was still second in the winter after Sarri refused.
Conceição is a proven winner, has high football intelligence, can read a game and make proactive changes instead of being reactive, and is relatable to players; he is clear and direct, they understand him, and his passion is contagious; players like to play for him. He is an excellent choice for head coach and I’m glad that we finally got him (maybe too little too late for this lost season but going forward, I think he’ll do well in 2024/25 if he stays.
It remains to be seen if our stupid managers won’t clash with him and undermine him. The rumor is that Gerry Cardinale had to overrule his underlings and order them to hire Conceição. If this rumor is true, it’s a good thing; if the owner backs him up, the stupid managers won’t have an easy time undermining him.
It also remains to be seen if the initial success in Supercoppa will also translate in the league, where we are in trouble in 8th place. There’s a lot to do and we can’t expect miracles from Conceição.
For me, even if Conceição is unsuccessful in the league for the second half of this season, it’s normal. He jumped into a sinking ship mid-season and that’s not easy. The initial success won’t necessarily translate into consistent success. I assume that for 2025/26 he will have time to fix the team, but the 2024/25 season may already be lost, given the horrible damage that the loser called Fonseca inflicted on our season.
Get ready theo and leao. You’ll never walking on the pitch.. just run and run !! Hehe…