AC Milan’s performance against Parma certainly upset the fans on Saturday evening and while the defence was the main issue, the attack wasn’t too good either. This was highlighted by Ahmed Bdair during our watchalong for the game.
Milan struggled from the first minute and in addition to Parma creating chance after chance, the Rossoneri couldn’t seem to create any of their own. They consistently relied on individual quality and when in possession, there was no pace to the game whatsoever.
After the final whistle, during our watchalong on YouTube, Ahmed Bdair discussed the issues under Paulo Fonseca and questioned his tactics in attack. Many fans will be able to relate as it was very reminiscent of what we saw last season.
“Can anyone tell me what the difference in our attacking system is from today to every single game under Pioli last season? What is the difference? Nobody can find it because there isn’t one. I have to emphasise this, he [Fonseca] was so smug in those press conferences. Talking about ‘I watched the games last year’ and ‘we will definitely be playing differently’.
“Where are these differences? Seriously, what did you watch? If you watched the games and you came up with Loftus-Cheek in attacking midfield then you are not the manager. If he watched the games and didn’t realise that this won’t work, he’s not a good manager,” he stated.
If you would like to hear more of Bdair’s takes from the game, you can rewatch the watchalong below (and fast-forward).
Yesterday, Milan was smoked in the same way that Pep was smoked by Mourinho in the 1/2 of the Champions League in 2010. He pulls the defensive line low, thus pulling the entire Milan team closer to the goal and waiting for him to lose the ball and move to the undefended half. In addition, there was lack of ideas and disorientation of most of the players. It can’t be played like this, our central defenders must not stand high and I guess everyone can see that. Even the backs (RB and LB) are not allowed to enter the spaces, if someone is not left to cover their space in case of losing the ball. The attack is too slow and predictable. The ball must circulate faster and the players must be mobile and look for spaces. You have to work on self-confidence. There’s a lot to do, so I’m not optimistic.
But things did look different against Real, City and Uefalona in pre-season… or was that all because we were playing b-teams and our b-team wanted to impress? Actually that could be it – I’m thinking out loud here.
I do wonder if we need some of those ‘b team’ players, I think Leao and Theo are looking complacent. Now it needs an elite coach to kick their ass and bench them. It’s east to keep putting Leao out there and justifying bad performance with an assist of 5 mins of brilliance. Been saying it for some time that Leao needs coaching, he’s got all the natural talent, but he’s wafting through his football at the moment.
Agree – I usually defend Leao on here but those misses against Torino and now last night… I think we need to accept that he’s never going to be the player we all know he can be.
It comes down to the coach, if Pep had him he’d be top 3 in the world…same with Klopp. I get the feeling Pioli let Leao do his thing, much as Grealish was allowed to do at Villa, show glimpses of talent, be undisciplined, justify that lack of discipline as ‘part of what makes the player’…then Pep got him and made him world class.
I also love/defend Leao, but the club is doing him no favours right now. This summer was the time above all other priorities to grab an elite coach. I’d have settled for no new signings if we’d have landed one
Yes, but what did you learn that you did not already know? Leao’s finishing remains poor as is his consistency. He’s not a complete player otherwise he wouldn’t be at Milan.
BUT he is still the most dangerous player we have.
Yeah. The attitude of players was the right one – IN F*NG FRIENDLIES!! Now that the real matches have started everyone’s playing for themselves with zero interest in defending.
Players like Saelemaekers should be on pitch as they’re doing everything they can. That may not be much but it’s still more than the “star players” holding back.
Yep – and it’s down to the coach to motivate. But why these guys need motivating at the start of a new season is beyond me.
Your name and avatar are kind of case in point here. Savicevic was a wonderful player, as talented as any, he did his time on the bench while Gullit, Van Basten, Papin and others took centre stage, taking his few chances when they came. He had no distractions, no cat walk, no music career, just a bucket full of talent, desire, discipline and a will to win….
Without meaning to sound f@cking old here…..footballers ain’t the same now
This. Absolutely spot on.
Different era. That work ethic is long gone. Players concerned more about social media presence than on-filed performance and grit.
Of course. It is called pre-season friendlies for a reason
I’m starting to think sometimes that we bribed Real, City and Barcelona during the summer.
In any case, next game have Saelemakers start as a LW. As for the LB, start Bartesaghi, Terraciano or a kid.
Preseason means absolutely nothing….never has
We hired Fonseca NOT because he was known as a tactical coach or a winning coach – but because he was a cheap hire who wouldn’t ask for much and is apparently good at developing young talent. Nobody wanted this guy. He didn’t have other teams knocking down his door. You get what you pay for.
That may be true especially since there were better options. And if his signing back fires, I will get next to you to criticize this management for that appointment. But it’s gonna need time.
Having said that, if Fonseca turns into Giampaolo 2.0 by game 7, then they will have no choice but to fire him.
Imagine if Pioli comes back in under the same cirumstances. LOL!!!
I can so see it….it’s almost poetic…
People put too much importance on preseason. Simply naive.
No one’s putting that much importance on preseason……. I was just referring to the fact the journalist said there’s no difference with Pioli – but clearly there was a difference in preseason.
But pre-season means nothing and you have been around long enough to know that, I say that thinking you watched Milan since Dejan’s days … Today two to three games for marketing and extra income in the States.
There is importance there, they might have been partially B teams, but you’re still playing the systems and brilliance of top coaches like Pep, Carlo and Flick
But what’s the point of beating those teams in pre-season and then drawing and losing the first two games of the season to Torino and Parma(newly promoted) respectively?
What is more important then playing ‘systems’ is actually creating one for your own team.
It is important for building match fitness and give some youngsters their chances but what I meant was, people here hyped this team and Fonseca based on preseason scores. Folks here even started mocking those who wanted Motta based on preseasn results. Just pathetic and cringy. I remember us beating Real with Pippo (or was it Montella) in preseason and we all know how that season went.
I think it’s the latter. Young players like Liberali really wanted to show themselves and I think the same would happen if we would play them right now. I don’t understand why a player who really impresses in preseason is moved aside when the league starts. For what do you have preseason then? Just skip it.
Because it’s embarrassing. Games like against Parma would be faster with dismissals. Better think about Coaches with a lot of achievements and get rid of unnecessary players to allocate player salaries for great Coaches.
The coach should have known the tactical error in the half. Instead of improving, the defense is still weak because all the players are in the opponent’s area. Sad
They need to buy more 10-20M players so we have 50 of them in the team. That will bring the title. Just stack rejects or last year contract players that are cheaper to buy and those are the top players that Milan needs to go to the top. Keep it up Ibra, 0 experience, all mouth 0 knowledge.
Milan had a poor game,there where under a lot of pressure in the fast half very poor,in offence it was bad and in defence they where not speaking to each other and they struggle during The game in midfield a lack of creativity bad pass.in attack no goalscorering treat lack off movement.as I said it was a bad game milan must pull out there stocks,play as a team be more agresive more creativity attack and defence as a team,milan has good player so don’t give up play with your heart for the club milan..milan forever.
The earlier fonseca realizes 4231 with RLC in AM isn’t going to work the better. All our midfielders have low defensive work rate in addition to leao that has no work rate and Theo that’s isn’t defensively disciplined. So that’s 6 players with low defensive work rate,that makes it easy for the opponents to hit us on the break which is what has been happening as they all don’t have the willingness to track back immediately.
Solution is move reinjdeers to AM and put musah besides fofana while instructing them to stay put at the back. That way there’s cover incase of counters
Or change the formation to a 343 and move Theo to a wing back where his defensive indiscipline would be covered by an extra Cb
I’ve said it from day one loftus is not an attacking midfielder. You start the season with leao pulisic and chukwueze and it didn’t go your way and you immediately change it back. Have faith in your players and let them grow some chemistry. You changed itt up and it turned out even worse.
It’s so true that our style still has pioli written all over it. The attack has no clue how to move and free up space especially when a team sits back and it is so easy to counter us on the wings and we can’t figure out how to defend. What I don’t understand is when we are pressing if the left back has moved up on the side we are attacking, why hasn’t both the right back and the defensive mid covered his position and stayed back? It’s football 101. Instead you have Calabria that’s waiting up there to do who knows what and can’t track back with pace. We have both of the double pivots hovering around doing absolutely nothing and the result is one misplaced pass they kick it out and its a 3 on 2. It was a problem with pioli and its a problem now. How hasn’t it been fixed in two years. It’s the basics ffs!
even if you will get all the best players in the world to Milan in the first place the coach didn’t know his starting players for the first team so best is bringing in someone who will be like as before to the victory