In recent days, due to a series of rather unpredictable developments, the future of Massimiliano Allegri at AC Milan has come under question. The unexpected events were, in order: Italy missing out on a third consecutive World Cup, followed by the resignations of head coach Gennaro Gattuso and federation president Gabriele Gravina; and Milan dramatically falling out of the title race after reopening it by winning the derby at the beginning of March. From there, the first rumours emerged: it is said that with Giovanni Malagò, the Serie A candidate for the presidency of the Italian Football Federation, the leading name for the future Italy manager would be the ex Juventus head coach himself, as relayed via Milan News.
This, combined with a Milan side now even putting next season’s Champions League qualification at risk (something that had seemed certain until recently) after four defeats in their last seven league matches, has fuelled a subtle wave of discontent not only towards the team and players, but also towards Allegri. Over the past 48 hours, as speculation has intensified significantly, all these rumours about the Rossoneri bench have gathered pace.
Sources at MilanNews.it report that, as things stand, Allegri’s intention is to remain at Milan. The coach is pleased to have returned to Milanello and is happy with the atmosphere created within the squad: throughout the year, he has repeatedly stated that the group at his disposal is of a high level, both professionally and personally. There is harmony between the players, Allegri, and his staff.
It is also undeniable that the coach expects support from the club, especially regarding the transfer market. The summer window (going back to that, as the winter one was essentially non-existent) has shown that with the right players, particularly those he values highly (such as Luka Modrić and Adrien Rabiot), there have been early signs that things could change. A change that, until last season, had resulted in an eighth-place finish and a turbulent environment.
The coach therefore expects that, in the summer, those at Casa Milan will recognise the need to target a certain type of player profile in order to raise the overall level of the squad (technically and otherwise) and genuinely compete for trophies, rather than merely drifting between the top four positions.
