Among the most surprising tactical moves in this first stretch of the season, the evolution of two players stands out. They are now untouchable. Pavlovic and Tomori, the two wide center backs, have often stepped up even in the opposing box. Pavlovic did it against Roma, and the Serbian has grown step by step since August. Tomori did the same against Lazio.
This interpretation of the role is now used by many teams, for example Inter with Bastoni, Roma with Mancini, Napoli with Di Lorenzo. The curious part is that Allegri, who no one expected to take such an aggressive approach, has put two raw defenders like Fik and Strahinja in positions where they influence play in the opposing area. Against Lazio, Tomori touched more balls in the opposing box than Nkunku. One of those touches was the assist for Leao’s opener, as relayed via MilanPress.it.
This shows another side of Milan:
Despite long stretches in a low block, when Allegri’s players have the ball new patterns appear. New solutions appear as well. These solutions might become key in tight matches against smaller clubs when the standard plan, wait and hit on the counter, cannot be used.
Milan will face several matches of this type soon. After the Coppa Italia, Maignan and his teammates will meet clubs from the lower half. Some away, like Torino and Cagliari. Others at San Siro, like Sassuolo, Verona and Genoa. In these matches Milan will need to take the initiative and open up. To break closed blocks, the role of the wide center backs will matter. They will need to defend but also link up with the wingbacks, Saelemaekers and Bartesaghi, and the midfielders, Fofana and Rabiot, or sometimes the forwards who drop to receive. This gives Allegri one more option. Few expected this.
