Ruben Amorim is making a name for himself in the Milan world not only for his tactical ideas, but also for the way he manages communication, the dressing room and the club's hierarchy. In just over two months, he has shown a clear approach: no preferential treatment, no untouchable starters and very little willingness to compromise. With anyone. But there is an important detail: his experience at Manchester United taught him that staying true to your beliefs does not mean constantly relying on the same solutions.
Open hierarchies and big names treated like everyone else
The player who has experienced this new Portuguese approach more than anyone is Christian Pulisic. Despite the American's importance to the team, Amorim waited until the fifth matchday before starting him, respecting both his physical recovery process and what he saw from him during the week. The same principle also led to Estupinan keeping his place against Lecce despite the criticism he faced after the Lazio game, while Moreira, who had starred in the match in Rome and was enjoying an excellent run of form with three goals in 60 minutes, was left out of the starting XI against the Lecce team, writes Milannews.it.
Amorim is certainly not one to hide when it comes to communication either. He defended Modric against criticism and, when he felt his own position was being questioned, responded firmly. He is a coach who wants to stand by his decisions and asks the pitch to determine whether he is right or wrong.
Adapting without losing the identity: this is the real challenge for Amorim and Milan:
The match against Lecce perhaps provided the most interesting signal of Amorim's first month at Milan. The Portuguese coach altered the structure, also using a back four during the build-up, adapting to the opponent without significantly changing the team's identity. That is precisely what, by his own admission, he wants to do in order to avoid repeating the same mistakes he made in Manchester.
This is probably where the future of his Milan will be decided: maintaining identity, aggression and principles without turning them into dogmas. The rotations will continue, as will some unpopular decisions that will spark debate. But Amorim seems to have established one simple rule at Milan: nobody plays because of their name. Everyone must earn their place within his project. And Milan, slowly but surely, is beginning to look more and more like its coach.
