AC Milan's defensive department has conceded more goals than the coach would have liked. The many injuries obviously made an impact on the performances. But now, Pioli aims to finish the season with a reliable backline, especially in the Europa League match against Roma next Thursday.
This morning Tuttosport proposes an article analyzing the impact of Fikayo Tomori on Milan's defensive department this season. It's one thing to have the Englishman on the field, quite another when the former Chelsea player is absent. And against Roma on Thursday night, Tomori is one of the certain absentees for the challenge.
In fact, the yellow card he received in the second leg of the round of 16 against Slavia Prague forced him to move from the column of warned players to that of suspended ones. It's no coincidence that with Tomori's return, Milan's defensive performance has improved: in the last six games, from after the Monza match onwards, Milan has not conceded a goal or has conceded only one: a significant improvement compared to autumn-winter when the average goals conceded was two per game. In general, in the ten Serie A rounds in which Tomori was absent, there were four matches ending with at least two goals conceded. Among these, also the 5-0 defeat in the derby.
And if Tomori's absence could weigh heavily, the same can be said for Malick Thiaw's absence, which would force Stefano Pioli to tie his hands in terms of team selection. The German, on the eve of the Lecce match, as admitted by the coach himself in the press conference, fell victim to plantar fasciitis. The problem kept him out of the match against Lecce and also out of the latest training sessions: even yesterday, the former Schalke 04 defender underwent an individual training session. Between today and tomorrow, it will be understood whether the discomfort will be overcome and Thiaw can at least be used from the bench.
As things stand, considering also the absence of Pierre Kalulu, for Pioli the only available pair remains Gabbia-Kjaer, with the Dane also coming from a physically tough period. On the bench, except for Thiaw who remains, as mentioned, doubtful, Simic cannot be there as he is not on the list. The only solution will be Davide Bartesaghi or possibly Clinton Nsiala.
