If the two friendlies against Celtic (2-2) and Inter (1-1) had intermittently offered glimpses of Ruben Amorim’s football (pressing, possession and verticality) the heavy 3-0 defeat to Chelsea, in which Milan failed to register a single shot on target, exposed the many limitations that the Rossoneri squad appears to have. And so, with just 14 days to go until the official start of the season, the club must overhaul the squad, with numerous departures and a few targeted signings.
The most accurate definition of the current Milan side was offered by Tuttosport this morning, with the newspaper describing the Rossoneri as a “work in progress”. And that certainly seems to be the case.
Ruben Amorim remains confident in his team when speaking to the media and continues to insist that Milan will be ready for the match against Torino. However, what is becoming increasingly clear is that Milan will need to make significant changes in the transfer market, both in terms of departures and arrivals.
As far as sales are concerned, the Portuguese coach himself has confirmed that the squad is too large and that several players need to leave. There are a huge number of players potentially heading for the exit door, Leao, Tomori, Fofana, Ricci, Estupiñán, Gimenez, Athekame, Odogu and perhaps even Loftus-Cheek and Musah... Can Milan manage to sell them all within three weeks?
The truth is that these three friendlies, played in Glasgow, Perth and Jakarta, have highlighted all the limitations of Ruben Amorim’s squad.
The Portuguese coach wants a team built around possession, committed to pressing and featuring players who look to play vertically. Yesterday, none of that was on display, not even remotely.
The feeling is that many of the players currently in the squad simply do not possess the characteristics required by Amorim’s system. For this reason, departures are necessary. And for the same reason, Milan will then need to turn their attention to the incoming market.
The problem is that Amorim’s assessment period may have lasted a little too long, with the league season beginning in just 14 days away with an away match against Torino.
