Franco Ordine commented on the Champions League competition and AC Milan's journey, in this morning's print edition of Il Corriere dello Sport.
According to the Italian journalist, the format of the new Ceferin-branded Super Champions League is brand new and cannot be compared to the traditional formula of past years.
Even a year ago at this time, Milan ended up in a "group of steel" (with PSG, Borussia Dortmund, and Newcastle), and their debut against the English team was a sort of manifesto for future development: many wasted goals in front of the net, third place, and relegation to the Europa League, where they were disgraced by two defeats against De Rossi's Roma.
This time, they found themselves grouped with the Reds, along with Real Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen, both of whom are also traveling, making the competition even more challenging.
The start was disastrous, just like in the league, against one of the giants of European football, Liverpool: three goals conceded in a night that started, by the way, in the best way possible, with a Calabria-Morata-Pulisic acceleration, finished by the American's strike.
At this point, based on simulations, Milan has almost zero chance of finishing in the top eight, and they can only chase a potential next-round playoff if they manage to pick up at least a point between Leverkusen and Madrid, with the task of collecting all three points in the matches against Bruges, Zagreb, Girona, Slovan, and Red Star.
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Is this mission possible for Fonseca's Milan?
The first authoritative answer will come tonight with a visit to the fortress of the Bay Arena, where Xabi Alonso's army has often crushed the ambitions of many high-ranking rivals. The Germans' debut in the Netherlands, concluded with a resounding 4-0 over Feyenoord, was public testimony of this.
The Milan of these last virtuous six days (between the derby and Lecce) does not offer the necessary guarantees to withstand the German team's shockwave, which only a few days ago came out without significant damage from the match against Bayern, the ruler of the Bundesliga.
Fonseca is the first to know that a gallant performance will be needed, full of attention in marking and tension in respecting positions and duties—something not yet seen despite the notable number of goals and individual performances worth mentioning, from Gabbia to Fofana, from Morata, perfectly recovered and indispensable to the group for his recognized role as moral and material leader, to Pulisic.
Surely, this type of performance must involve some adjustments to the ultra-offensive setup (4-2-goals) to prevent the team from splitting into two blocks. Lastly, there's a strange exclusion to explain to many. Suddenly, the Serbian giant Pavlovic (who almost scored in Parma and marked the week after at the Olimpico against Lazio), considered a pillar of the shaky defense of the first appearances, has fallen off the radar of the Portuguese coach.
Perhaps it's due to Gabbia and Tomori's form, but certainly also due to some awkwardness in starting plays from the back. On a night like tonight in Germany, a figure like his could become indispensable.
