Better than Allegri, who had started strongly last year, much faster than Fonseca, who instead began with the handbrake on, and quicker than Pioli too. The lightning-fast start belongs to the former coach of the Scudetto-winning side: 31 points in the first eleven rounds of the 2021-22 championship, the one that ended with the latest Italian title in the trophy cabinet.
Amorim is also going strong in his first outing, with an average that in previous championships would have placed him even higher: with 24 points a year ago, at the same stage of the competition, Milan would have been top of the table. After all, the average does not lie: 24 of the 33 available points have come from seven wins, three draws (only one defeat in Serie A), 2.18 per match. Allegri had stopped at 22 points, Fonseca at 17, and 22 for the last Pioli of the 2023-24 season. The coach of the 2022 celebrations also started strongly in the following championship (26 points in 2022-23) and in the 2020-21 season, with 27, as relayed via La Gazzetta dello Sport today.
The journey...
Figures that were double the 13 points of the 2019-20 championship, which began with Giampaolo at the helm before he was replaced during the season by Pioli himself. While waiting to find the same rhythm in Europe, Milan are racing ahead in the league: a blistering start with victories away at Torino and in their San Siro debut against Venezia, a draw at Juve's stadium after conceding a comeback just minutes before the end, and another draw in the following away match at Lazio. Two goals down, Milan came back against the current leaders of the competition: a result that takes on a different significance in light of Lazio's progress. Then came the victory over Lecce, which Cardinale described as the most beautiful sporting evening since he had taken control of the club, and the melancholy draw in Reggio Emilia against Sassuolo. From there came the turning point: four victories in the following five matches, including the away trips to Udine and Genoa and the derby. In between came the only slip-up against Bologna.
Milan's schedule
Now, sensing that the team is particularly stressed, Amorim has granted a week of rest, with the appointment for the return set for next Monday: for those who have no other official commitments, such as call-ups to their national teams, there is time to switch off. Many have indeed left, many among those who remained, obviously: thirteen have matches around Europe and the world, while others are still following strict recovery schedules from injuries. A break within the break that is longer than usual: the average for professional divisions is usually shorter. It is not the only unusual thing: the resumption of training ahead of Frosinone, the following week, will also take place after granting a good amount of relaxation to the players involved with their national teams.
There is no shortage of precedents: for example, the Tuesday off granted to the team two days before the European away trip to Bournemouth. The Rossoneri returned to the training pitch on Wednesday, the same day as their departure for England.
Amorim's training sessions.
Enough to speak of "organisational innovations" introduced by Amorim and his staff. On the pitch too, Ruben has brought new methods: training sessions are never too hard, GPS devices and kilometre counters never "overdo it". "We train by playing," the Portuguese coach himself has often explained, meaning that the best opportunities to test tactical systems and movements are the matches themselves.
A situation that some time ago may have caused a few players to turn up their noses, and which was hypothesised to be the cause of the many Rossoneri injuries that occurred in closely spaced periods, but which was later overcome thanks to the explanations provided by the coach. In the meantime, nobody is to stop even during these days: even remotely, every player will have specific work programmes to carry out. So that they can return in tip-top condition.
