Speaking to Sky Sport 24, Peppe Di Stefano highlighted AC Milan's tactical identity on the pitch and the need to sign a new striker. Here are the journalist's words as relayed by Radio Rossonera:
"There are two identities within this Milan. The one from the past seasons, highly offensive, requiring perfect automatisms to support three attacking midfielders and a striker, or adopting a slightly more balanced formation like the 4-3-3. From what I know, Pioli is working on this latter option. Since July 10th, he has experimented with the 4-2-3-1, but with the new players, he has focused on a midfield of 3. I believe that's the starting point. In reality, it's still a kind of false 4-3-3, because quite often during the friendlies this summer – 7 matches played by Milan – we have seen the 4-3-3 easily shifting into a 4-2-3-1, with Loftus-Cheek behind the striker. A midfielder with physical strength, similar to what Kessié was, which proved decisive. Pioli aims to emulate that Milan: two central midfielders, in this case Krunic and Reijnders, who is performing very well and is, in my opinion, the best fit this season, and Pulisic slightly further back from initial expectations. Pay attention to Chukwueze, as he's making a strong impression in the first 10/15 days of Milanello. He has dribbling skills running in his blood, glides, accelerates, takes on opponents – and we know how much of a difference this can make in Italy."
AC Milan needs a new striker...
"I believe that the Milan we'll see next Monday against Bologna will resemble the team from the recent pre-season outings, unless there are drastic changes in the coming days. Milan is currently training, focusing on the attacking aspect. Let's reiterate that Olivier Giroud is 37 years old, needs to be managed carefully throughout the season. As for Lorenzo Colombo, the best solution for himself and Milan is for him to go and play elsewhere, to truly understand his strengths and potentially come back stronger in the future. I recall Marco Borriello: he had 3/4 experiences away from Milan before he truly proved himself as a Milan player. The third matter concerns Okafor, who is more of a wide player than a main striker. He only scored 7 goals in the Austrian league last year. This is why Milan is also looking for a solution there upfront, a new number 9. We will see if the transfer market ultimately provides something for Stefano Pioli."
