Tuttosport, in this morning's print edition, highlights Stefano Pioli's choice to do a 'turnover' that doesn't work, again.
That's what emerged strongly from Sunday night's match against Monza, where the numerous initial changes made by Stefano Pioli led Milan, especially in the first half, to be a team without reference points, both individually and in the game.
It's entirely normal that a trident composed of Samuel Chukwueze, Luka Jovic, and Noah Okafor cannot have the technical affinity that, instead, Christian Pulisic, Olivier Giroud, and Rafael Leao have demonstrated possessing. The issue, however, is not solely technical and it is rooted in the playing time that the first three haven't had together.
As a result, there were missing synchronisations within the team, along with ineffective connections with other teammates, hindered by Monza coach Raffaele Palladino's tactical moves.
Changing so many elements, with a 3-0 lead to manage in 48 hours against Rennes in the Europa League return leg, was counterproductive, and the response was seen in the second half when Milan, despite being numerically disadvantaged due to Jovic's expulsion, managed to equalize, putting Monza under pressure. The reason? The entrances of Reijnders, Leao, Giroud, and Pulisic replacing Adli, Chukwueze, Okafor, and Bennacer.
Then, the data never lie and it shows how Pioli hasn't learned from past mistakes in managing certain situations. Last year, his Milan showed questionable performances when heavily rotated in personnel and formation: a 0-0 draw away against Cremonese, a 0-1 extra time defeat against Torino in the Coppa Italia, a dull 0-0 draw at San Siro against Empoli, 1-1 draws away against Bologna (with a Sansone goal after 20 seconds) and at home against Cremonese followed by a 2-0 defeat against Spezia.
All matches where the decision was made to "sacrifice" the league (where Milan finished fifth, later moved to fourth due to Juventus' penalty) to chase European success in the Champions League, which ended in semifinal defeat against Inter.
So, the tally tells us that whenever Pioli overhauls his lineup, Milan has never won, securing only 4 draws and suffering 3 defeats, scoring 4 goals (including the two against Monza on Sunday night) and conceding nine. But, the dismantling of a large part of the starting lineup does not change the characteristics of a defensive system that continues to leak from many cracks.
Now, Milan has conceded 31 (!) goals in 25 league matches and allows an average of 13.9 shots per game to opponents, placing them among the worst defences in the Serie A.
To go far in Europe and not compromise the league path, it will be necessary to know how to manage certain situations, concludes the report.
