AC Milan have had a poor year from a defensive standpoint with injuries piling up in that area of the squad, but that is not the only reason for shipping goals.
As highlighted by Radio Rossonera, there is more than just the individual performances of the defenders in the team to blame for Milan looking shaky at the back throughout the season.
The way in which Milan press seems to split the team in half, with five defensive players and five attacking players. This means that if the press is played through, there is a huge space for the opposition to exploit, forcing Milan back towards their own goal and inviting pressure.
The press never seems very well thought out for Milan, and it creates a lot of weakness. Unfortunately for Milan having so many defensive injuries has only compounded the problem.
Simon Kjaer, Malick Thiaw, Pierre Kalulu and Fikayo Tomori have long injury lay-offs, mostly at the same time, means that when Milan have been easily passed through, the attacking team are met with a makeshift defence featuring inexperienced or out-of-position players.
The players returning from injury may not be enough to tighten Milan up, there has to be a change in how cohesively they press up the field.
