Ardon Jashari’s performance against Sassuolo has left some worried, but AC Milan remain calm about his future. Despite that, a change could be made.
It is clear that Milan need a bit of solidity at the base of midfield and Jashari, at least on Sunday, did not offer that. He lacked tempo and was very clearly not ready to take the reins from Luka Modric. However, this may have been an impossible task.
Compared to Modric, the Swiss youngster was never going to be the same; they are completely different players.
However, there are calls for a change in midfield and one could be made.
Ricci in for Jashari?
As Gazzetta dello Sport reports, via MilanVibes, the Swiss could find himself back among the substitutes. He is a player who needs consistency and whilst removing him from the XI would deprive him of that, the Rossoneri cannot afford to take the risk.
They still believe in him, very much so. However, Massimiliano Allegri may turn to a more reliable option in Samuele Ricci, who can also play in the deeper role.
The Italian knows Serie A and has shown more comfort coming into the line-up and dropping out of it when needed. So, Modric’s replacement could be the former Torino man, at least for now.
It is also worth noting that the Croatian could be back among the substitutes this weekend, so it would be another boost, even if he could only be there to support the team.
I mean yesterday the whole team was terrible. It was unfortunate that Jashari struggled a lot yesterday and it doesn’t help that his last 2 games he also struggled but there have been bright spots here and there. I think the whole team is going through a very tough time mentally and physically. They need to pick themselves up to finish strong
Well said.
Its ok to be drunk, but drunk and hypnotized… another story.
Youngsters and players will low effort he should bench.
Till the end this is how Allegri should use players.
Mike Koni Gabbia Pavlo Fofana Ruben Rabiot Bartesaghi Saelemaekers Puli Leao
And at the end final result – final result.
You know you played the best and thats all.
Estupinan Ricci Jashari Nkunku Santi Fullkrug Tomori only in case of emergency….
Youngsters and players with low effort should be benched but he has Leao in the lineup Allegri should use till the end
Neither Jashari nor Ricci is even close to Modric’s quality. Modric is a proven world-class winner, despite his age. Jashari and Ricci should not be crucified because their last name is not Modric.
Still, it is fair to say that regardless of the reason why (in the case of Jashari, aggravated by a devastating injury), both Jashari and Ricci, despite some good moments in some games, have so far been a disappointment.
It is not unreasonable to give new players, especially the youngish ones, some time to gel before calling them a flop. Often they are not that good in their first season with a new team. In the case of Jashari, his move to Milan did involve a change of country and league. That’s of course not a valid excuse for Ricci who is Italian and used to Serie A.
But this said, yes, it is fair to be concerned about Ricci and Jashari not having the required quality, even if it is a bit premature to say so.
When that quality is evident, sometimes the player doesn’t even need time to gel. World-class players like Modric and Rabiot hit the ground running and from their very beginning with Milan, they comfortably fit in and started performing at the high level that is consistent with their high quality.
Unfortunately, Ricci and Jashari are not Modric or Rabiot. That’s just a fact. The last two are world-class players. The former two are just decent players, and definitely not world-class, so of course they suffer when they have to replace truly world-class players.
No one in modern football is close to Modrić eventhough he’s 40. He’s one of a kind. Bielsa even named a midfield role after him. The “Modrić role”. Someone who defends as a #6 and attacks like #10.
Yet there are some people that constantly write how Modric is slowing the game down. Like Jashari and Ricci would do something better. It is just sad to read stuff like that.
use Ricci more, atleast he is no stranger of the league, need adaptation only on tactic,
loan Jashari to mid clubs (w/out otb), i see CDK in him, had what it’s need but slow adaptation, need playing time & adapt to new league, country etc
Milan should stop buying players from lower leagues like the Belgian league and the Dutch league especially when they are very young players.
Moving from a league like that to a big club like Milan is way too much pressure. At least Reinjders was 25 and in his prime but players under 25 will struggle to adapt at a big club.
Instead Milan should poach players from other serie A teams like Gila who have proven themselves. Just like we did with Kessie, Tonali, Bennacer and Krunic.
Otherwise we will run the risk of them failing to adapt at a big club with more pressure.
This summer players like Palestri, Igor Tiago, Atta, Fagioli, Kristensen, etc are proving themselves in Serie A. These are the type of players Milan should target each summer.
I don’t agree but what shouldn’t be done is pay 40M for players from those leagues. Not even 30M€. Offer up to 20M if you think the player is worth that and if they ask for more say goodbye.
You will always end up paying market price. Because of the EPL and other big teams prices are inflated for players that are basically prospects.
No you won’t. It’s simple.
Exactly. Each league has unique characteristics and there’s a long list of big names that left their league and tanked, feeble Wirtz being the latest example. Lauriente, Pinamonti, Orsolini and Zaniolo, those are the players who should be targeted.
Who will score? oh yes we play for 0:0 i forget sorry 😂
I think the best replacement for Modric would be Fofana. he has played the position in the past. He seems to have better vision than either Jashari or Ricci, and while he is not Modric offensively, he might be better defensively…Up top I would play RLC and Rabiot. It’s not perfect, but it is too late in the season to try to get either RIcci or Jashari up to speed.
I don’t know if Fofana is better than Modrić defensively. He presses more for sure, but Modrić is way better at reading the game, the ball trajectory, positioning,… which leads to him making a lot of interceptions (in fact before fbref took down the stats for anyone who isn’t a gambler, I saw that he lead the team in interception). Fofana is simply way too much mistake prone and in front of the defense, you don’t want that and you need less pressing but more interception and tackling.
On the vision aspect, yes Fofana has made a lot of through balls that lead to goals and assists, but finding the last pass and dictating the tempo in front of the defense while the other team presses you is a totally different skillset.
When did he make mistakes you are talking about? He is prone to making mistakes in front of the defence but he didn’t make any actually, he is bad in front of the opposition goal and most criticism was about his shooting/finishing. ??
There were several instances where he also lost balls in a silly fashion, did bad tackles (vs Roma) and misplayed a short pass.
Furthemore Fofana was a never a defensive midfielder contrary to popular beliefs, he was a box-to-box midfielder in Monaco and was always paired with a more defensive profile.
““It’s as if for years I had been watching football in a certain way, and now my perception is changing because I no longer see the pitch from the same angle, I don’t have the same reference points. For example, before, when I played in front of the defense, I knew I had two players behind me, one diagonally to the right and one to the left. Now it’s completely different. I play as a right midfielder. When we don’t have the ball, I’m very advanced, almost like a forward. When we do have the ball, I position myself between the lines.” Fofana, March 17th 2026.
Popular belief? He literally said that not even 2 months ago. You can’t misunderstand this even if you try hard.
In Monaco he played in a 4-2-3-1 in front of the defense but wasn’t the more defensive of the 2. In 2021/22 he was often paired with Tchouaméni, do you really think he was more defensive than Tchouaméni ? Then it was Denis Zakaria who took over. Both Zakaria and Tchouaméni could and did play as central defenders sometimes.
In France, during the world cup, when he started it was always with Tchouaméni besides him.
As per his quote, he is saying he never played that high originally as he was always paired with someone right in front of the defense, but right now he is our most advanced midfielder, as Modrić is the deepest midfielder while Rabiot is the box-to-box midfielder and is responsible for a lot of the ball carrying. Fofana is almost in a mezzala role with us.
Exactly, and he played in a DM position. YOu seem to think that DM position has to be a defensive player. Pirlo played in that position. Zubimendi also. Modric also now. None of these players are defensive players. So your argument makes 0 sense.
It’s the position Fofana wants to play.
Could work well.
I’m also keen to see Jashari get a decent run of playing time.
But with the top 4 race now so tight we can’t afford to risk anything. So agree RLC, Fofana, Rabiot could be what we need to get enough points from these three fixtures.
With Riicci & Jashari coming on for RLC & Fofana in the last 20 mins. Cannot afford to rest Rabiot.
They don’t believe in Jashiri, stop making things up. They know Jashiri, Gimenez and Nkunku were huge mistakes. That’s over €100 million, it’s unforgivable. Until this madness of signing randos from other leagues stops, this yearly reset will continue.
I think they believe in the fee they can get for him this summer. Might not play him again so he doesn’t lower it further.
Yep. If it true Juve want him, he can sit on the bench until the end of the season.