Arrigo Sacchi has suggested that AC Milan were spared by some goalkeeping errors and a poor opponent during last night’s 3-1 victory against Cagliari.
Milan did go a goal behind at the Unipol Domus after a good start to the game when Zito Luvumbo hammered a near post shot past Marco Sportiello, but Stefano Pioli’s side went in 2-1 up at the break thanks to two goals in six minutes from Noah Okafor and Fikayo Tomori.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek joined Okafor by getting his first goal for the club with a rocket of a shot in the second half and that effectively killed the game, earning a massive three points for what was a heavily rotated side.
Sacchi spoke in his usual weekly column for La Gazzetta dello Sport and gave his thoughts on Milan’s win as well as Inter’s 2-1 defeat at home against Sassuolo, their first of the season.
“George Bernard Shaw said that football is the art of compressing universal history into ninety minutes. On the sixth day he told us that the poet was right once again,” he said.
“Sassuolo’s victory over Inter, Napoli’s rebirth against Udinese and Milan’s success in Cagliari demonstrate that the history of this season is still yet to be written.
“Football is changing, slowly but it is doing so. There are teams with little name that play it all the way. Inter-Sassuolo was a real match. Last night the Emilians attacked with great determination.
“Inter started well, the first 5-6 minutes were good, then they slowed down and dropped the pace. And Sassuolo, who as demonstrated with the 4-2 win over Juventus is experiencing a great period of form, took advantage of it.
“Dionisi’s is not a tactical team but it has strategy, it plays. At San Siro I saw them attack with five or six, in the end they also missed a couple of goals. As for Berardi, we don’t find out now, sometimes his biggest opponent is himself, but he has enormous qualities.
“The value of the Sassuolo players put together is probably lower than that of the two Juventus attackers, Vlahovic and Chiesa, but none of this matters, in fact it is the beauty of football. Now Inter don’t have to worry, they just have to continue to develop their football and not let it go to their heads.
“Victory is a very precarious concept and precariousness enters our minds just when we believe we can win in any case. It’s a discussion that applies to everyone, the worst enemy is sometimes within ourselves.
“Compared to Sassuolo-Inter, Cagliari-Milan was a dull match. Stefano Pioli put many new players on the field, ones we had seen little of until now. It wasn’t a great match, Milan managed to make up for the 1-0 also thanks to the help of Radunovic.
“Ultimately, I think it was a modest match, resolved thanks to the superiority of some players. The team started strong but also with little consistency, in fact in this way they exposed themselves to the opponents’ counter-attacks, perhaps the only phase of the game that all Italian teams know how to do.
“Milan suffered two or three counter-attacks, then the help of the Cagliari goalkeeper arrived in the first goal and partly also in the second, while the third was a good shot from Loftus-Cheek. Let’s say that the Rossoneri didn’t destroy themselves with effort to win.
“I think that in football the compactness factor matters a lot. If a team is compact then it is easy to double up and collaborate. The more you stretch yourself, the more complicated everything becomes. Of course, you can also do pressing like this, but it’s not the same thing.
“These three are the most important points in my opinion: compactness, aggression and communication. Milan has valuable players, hopefully they will grow further.
“If they manage to do it following this path, I believe the material to go strong is there. Milan has valuable players, hopefully they will grow further.”
Sacchi talks 2 much for someone who hasnt coached in over 20 years.
He’s right tho Milan wasnt all that good, but it was subs playing so i give a pass
Sacchi is well qualified to comment as a former successful coach of AC Milan. He speaks as an experienced coach who gave something to modern football in how his milan side played. He has as much right to give his opinion, as much as we do on this comment section.
His assessment of the two games is very good. Anyone with a little knowledge of football, can see that milan was lucky to win yesterday. They can also see that pioli is below the average italian coach technically and tactically.
Milan may have been scudetto contenders under a different coach. Under pioli, milan is out of the title race. If milan comes in 3rd, it would be a miracle. I hope i am proven wrong. The real contenders are inter, napoli, and juventus. If milan management hires a real coach, at the end of the season, the performances of leao, hernandez, tomori, thiaw, and others would immediately increase to consistent peak performances. The players know the coach isnt the best and its seen in their discouraging performances…leao, hernandez etc. They know if they win all the games, pioli gets the credit… i dont envy their position. Imagine knowing that your coach is shht… you want him gone… while, knowing that you want to at least qualify for champions league…. how would you play? With consistent match winning performances? Knowing that it increases the coach’s influence and chance of staying? This is why leao is playing for himself. He knows that its not best. But its also not the worse.
Nothing exposes pioli as other small team coaches who actually threaten inter with a loss or a draw… in compare to a 5-1 beating to pioli’s milan…
Reijnders and a few others already realized how shhtt pioli is. Sacchi is saying it in a technical way.
i stopped reading after
– They can also see that pioli is below the average italian coach technically and tactically.-
boi you’re among those who do not have little foobtall knowledge
Outside Sachi is qualified to comment about Milan, you pretty much wrote a complete garbage.
I just thanks God that pundits wannabe with ‘i’m smarter than Pioli’ attitude like you never get to coach Milan or the club will never win 19th Scudetto or even comeback to CL anymore.
Superb! Absolutely agree. Pioli has started to lose the changing room.
I would like to see Pioli out but I would also NOT like to see Inter claim the second star before Milan……
I’ve seen how players act when the coach loses the players.
This is not happening at Milan at all. Idk what you think you saw or think you know
Interesting take Robias. But I don’t think Pioli is below average technically or tactically. I think he’s more limited in certain aspects and in some abilities. For instance, he shouldn’t need Ibra to come back and for what exactly? To help in something he himself can’t do as a coach? I’d really like to see him do it on his own and earn his own merit. And a Scudetto would be a great way to show that. However I do believe we’re good for 4th at least, for now, and anything above that is gravy 😁
Would take Berardi over any of our new fancy wingers, at least he scores against Inter….oh and Juve
@milanisti72 lemme isolate your statement, just because he scores against inter and juve…has berrardi tried his hanmds on another adventure -even if its still in serie A- and scored against juce and inter? secondly, does scoring against inter and juve mak you the best in your position?
Lets allow these our own Right wingers to develop and come into their own, they are trying their best
Buddy not just Juve and Inter, Berardi stats as a RW is one of the best in Serie A consistently now for the past few years. And seems he’ll have another good year
You know there is players that suit to play in mediocre team
I think that’s a good synopsis. It wasn’t an exciting game, more workmanlike, though you could see that the new starts were keen to impress and were rather green as a result.
So, it was mission accomplished for Milan and Inter, who perhaps started to believe their own hype, got turned over!
All in all a satisfying evening..
very tru
@robias i think pioli is good for the team but then the team still needs to sit up and improve more if dey are to be the best version of an European MilanBUT lets not forget, the leao and hernandez you are using as examples of players using their individual performances to boost the team all reached this level in part through HIS (pioli) guidance and supervision…he gels well and communicates well with the players (which is very fundamental in todays coaching world), he is also trying technically, although i believe he can still do more, but i say since he gave us the league, gave us our best run in a champions league in recent years he deserves some chance to still manage the team in his own way just like Klopp at Liverpool
From the start it was going to be a dull game. These relegation sides only want a point from big teams like us. We won it with our subs playing away on Cagliari which is always a hard match so i think we can’t ask for more from our boys.
I respect Sacchi. But it’s just funny he thinks the match against Cagliari was dull and then pointed the finger at Milan, when it was Cagliari who made the match less interesting to watch because they used “let’s wait in the back and then counter” strats.
I mean, Cagliari played at their home and they should the one who keeps ball possession and come out to attack Milan. But no, just like every mid to low Italian team, they decided to sit their ass in the back and wait for counter.
In everything he says you have to pick a point or two from what he said , personally our coach isn’t a good tactician he reply on individual too much than playing as a unit. Plus Milan presently doesn’t have a style of way , I see long balls or pass to leao and personally I don’t like the fact he doesn’t fall back to help defence. We need to have a style of Play
@Robias!!!! you’re right Pioli don’t have any credit from me as a coach. Anytime acmilan Vin I said thanks God we’re got the three points, never satisfied with the game they’re playing.
Thanks to all who responded to my post above. Whether you strongly disagreed or agreed with part, all of your comments are appreciated.
There is no way, absolutely no way that a modern coach allows his team to lose to one side 5 times in one year. This is not “burnley vs manchester city” this is “AC Milan vs Inter Milan.” What the f**k? Those losses costed Milan so much…. knock out of the competition, loss of an italian cup and loss of major points in the title race… not to mention, bragging rights and simple human dignity… something is wrong with that clown name pioli.
I’ve been watching milan since 2007. I fell in love with Ancelotti’s milan. I didnt know much about the tactical and technical aspects of football then. This is 2023, 16 years later. Personally i’ve trained for amateur football teams, played in amateur competitons and leagues and i have improved technically and tactically over that time. Maybe yall as readers are way more experienced than i, making my views that of a silly critical amateur.
All i can say is that i agree 100% with Sacchi. I appreciate his honest criticism. I believe he is saying (without explicitly saying it) that Pioli is crap and below average as a coach…while saying that milan won because some of the players are actually good. I say this because of Sacchi’s following words:
“Ultimately, I think it was a modest match, resolved thanks to the superiority of some players. The team started strong but also with little consistency, in fact in this way they exposed themselves to the opponents’ counter-attacks, perhaps the only phase of the game that all Italian teams know how to do.”
Pioli has had Milan for how long? Why arent there improvements in his substution timing, injury management, players technical abilities? Leao and hernandez didnt seem to get better, they got worse this start of a new season… they dont seem hungry. Reijnders didnt get better between the 1st and 6th games, he got worse.
Everyone football fan has a different temperament. Some are more optimistic and few are like me, sceptically pessimistic. I see huge flaws in milan’s game. And some of those flaws seem so basic that i wonder how could a huge club like milan not have those things better managed… The transfer market was one of the best that i have seen in a long time. But what worried me was that a terrible coach could make all of that hype void….
I am hoping for the best, that i would eat my pessimistic words. I want Milan to lift that 20th trophy before inter.
Sadly, when i look at inter milan, i see a team that has improved and seem more hungry for silverware, this year more than last year….
I see an inter who has about two strong teams making them even stronger for substitutions. I see an inter who could fight with ANY team in a champions league final. I must say that its clear that Inzaghi has improved inter every year since he started. Their players seem to have fire in their eyes. They play with conviction and a fight until the last minute. Even though they lost yesterday, on their night the game could have gone the other way. I was utterly happy that they lost though. I was impressed by Sassuolo. Beating both juve and inter. I ask myself, why couldnt milan at least get a draw against inter, if pioli is so amazing???
I agree with everything you wrote up there, you are the smartest fan I’d seen on here in a very long time…
The red side of Milan has no fire, they’re ready to admit defeat and go home like kids!
The coach is honestly not good enough, and the players just do their best and play football!!!
Sock puppet…
“There is no way, absolutely no way that a modern coach allows his team to lose to one side 5 times in one year”
You must be new to the game. Allows? Pioli didn’t set out to lose, he lost because Inter ARE better than Milan. Usually, the team with better players wins.
What?! LOL how about Inter Sassuolo, who have the better Players?
He set out to lose because of ignorance or bravado. He played right into Inters hands the last game. He’s played into Inters hands every time we meet them. Inzaghi isn’t Pep and Pioli certainly isn’t even a Conte.
There are coaches out there that have the ability to beat better teams.
Bro your post is so weird. It’s like I disagree but yet agree at the same time lol 😂😂. I don’t agree with Pioli being totally bad but I do think Inzaghi has his number and by extension he seems to be a better coach imo and definitely a better Cup coach since the days of Lazio. I guess that’s why he wins derbies as it’s very Cup-like. But ya pretty much agree otherwise. You made valid points on the improvements by Inter as a team and like you mentioned they can go the UCL final again AND WIN (they could have won vs City, they played well). I don’t think we can. If you look at Inter vs Soceidad, the way they grinded out that draw after being under so much pressure, we’d have lost that easily 3 or 4-0. There’s a big difference in temperamentality.
I think also Sacchi was saying the quotes also in reference to the team game vs the individual game which can win us games vs lesser teams. But we’ve regressed since the season started from team play to individual play and that’s on the coach too. And for one game to shake our whole core like that is very poor tbh.
I know there is a time for bigging up your team and hyping them in the face of another football fan of an opposing team, but there comes a time when our analysis needs to turn inward. A time when we should do honest critical introspection. At that time, team introspection could sound highly negative like i sounded above. Its about time that Milan return to its glory days. Milan should be a world dominating football side who strikes fear in EVERY opponent. Inter should be easily brushed aside. Pep Guardiola should wish that he doesnt meet milan.
One of the ways to do that, is to hire a world class tactical coach with a highly trained coaching staff. A coaching staff that shows our players better on and off the ball movement. Better close control. Better counter attacking pace. Milan has absolutely NO counter attack awareness. The movement of the ball is always slow while the opponents are in our half…. not inter(or napoli, or sassuolo)…. for inter, the ball is immediately released to a speedy winger or striker…. not only does milan not know how to counter attack. Milan has no defense against such a counter, which explains the 5 losses to inter milan in 2023. Especially the 5-1 loss.
I love you man!🏆
@ Robias i do agree with you…. and to all pioli fan… the question i will ask is that does milan stand a chance against intermilan even if we replay the match 3 times from now till next week? nope…
do we stand a chance against a team of superb chemistry like MANCITY, BARCELONA, PSG,LIVERPOOL?..nope because the manager of those team play with clear cut identity and chemistry…
sad but true, even ARSENAL as young as the team is will outplay milan anytime anyday….why? because of this sham manager, he is lucky he has a good team and the boys are playing for themselves….let us face a team with identity, then milan began struggling….its not supposed to be
You’re talking like with a different coach milan would be unstoppable. The reality here is Milan just doesn’t have top players. We punched above our weight twice (1 scudeto, 1 cl semifinal) and fans are under the illusion we have super wc players. We don’t.
Shity has a team worth 1.2B. Milan has a team worth 530M.
P$$$G, farselona, loserpool. All got quality that Milan just does not..
Arsenal did good after how many years? but i feel like they’re just another overrated, overpriced premier team…
Anyway. The point is Lord Pioli is working with limited budget. Manage expectations to mirror that!
Good team? Compared to clubs you mentioned?
Reality check time
It’s like this guy just started watching Milan this season lmao.
Comparing Milan who in the dark age for years until their comeback at CL in 2021/22 with clubs like Liverpool, City, Barca, or PSG who didn’t have problems with their financial, always got world class players at their disposal, and dominating at CL is just ignorant as FVCK.
Outside players like Zlatan, Giroud, and Kjaer, Pioli doesn’t even have top / world class players in the first 3 and 1/2 season in Milan. Most of his players are young and unknown like Leao, Tonali, Kalulu, Calabria, Bennacer, Kessie, Alexis, Thiaw, Tomori, Theo, Adli, Mike or mid level like Krunic, Messias, Florenzi, Rebic, etc.
Now Pioli got players like Pulisic, Reijnders, RLC, Musah, Chuk, or Okafor. While they are good players and an upgrade but i say they’re not big names caliber either. Pioli needs time to mixed these new players with old ones so he can get a solid team. But so far this Milan new team already achieved 5 win, 1 draw, and 1 lost very early in the season which is pretty impressive.
i disagree, because if you claimed mr pioli is working with limited budget having spent $130million on new players… then i guess football isnt a sport and business anymore! i remember in one of adriano galliani interview in carlo ancelloti’s book ” QUIET LEADERSHIP” he claimed football is like a movie, the stage is the stadium, the actors are the players, the coach is the director, he as the ceo is the producer that industrializes the sport….because they are the one putting the money down…..now tell me, if the director cannot orchestrate a good act despite the producer having gotten a good actors and talent to act on a good pay, is it the fault of the producer?… the director in this case the coach is the problem… football has proven over and over again, that paying ridiculous amount for players don’t win you trophies, PSG will tell you, man utd will tell you, even mancity success isnt built on their overpriced players but good talent like mahrez, not grealish, not kalvin phillip, not gvardiol , i can go on…..how much was Haaland bought? peanut…but take Guardiola away from city and you have a messed up team… i hope you get the message and im sure everyone will want him here in milan because that guarantees trophies galore
You seriously needs reality check when you compare Milan with these rich clubs.
People dont read. He said in comparison to the Inter-Sassuolo game ours was dull and if you watched both games then you’d also say the same 🤦♂️
I also agree in general with his critique of our performance. Basically i said the same thing in the ratings post. That our midfield had too much space and was susceptible to attacks. We’re lucky it was Cagliari but we got the goals and 3 points. We gotta do better vs Lazio