AC Milan lost points in Udine last night. The Rossoneri players did not look like they were getting anything from that match as they lacked a lot of quality that was needed to beat the other side. The red and black faithful need to show so much more of their abilities if they want to keep fighting for a top finish in this Serie A campaign.
Wrong lineup choices by Stefano Pioli, again
This time, Stefano Pioli made the wrong lineup choices. Ismael Bennacer and Tiémoué Bakayoko failed once again together to establish dominance. The idea was to put Bennacer between the defenders as he was supposed to send accurate and fast passes to his teammates. But, that did not work out well while, also, the former Chelsea and Monaco defensive midfielder failed to recover many balls and make the right choices at many times. This duo does not work together so far. The rotation in the midfield cost Milan points again. There was also lack of creativity in creating chances and one may argue that Stefano Pioli needed to start again with Junior Messias as an attacking midfielder or even a winger.
Brahim Diaz and Theo Hernandez: Now is the time to accelerate
Many players disappointed in the recent match and in particular Brahim Diaz and Theo Hernandez who are under the scope. The former Real Madrid playmaker has not been showing consistent performances. He misses passes and opportunities to send some teammates into good scoring chances and he just simply sometimes struggles to dribble past the opponents like he used to.
As for Theo Hernandez, his defensive contribution and attacking one are missed. There needs to be more quality and determination shown from him. It is now up to him to prove what he is really about and try to lead his teammates, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic, out of this dark tunnel. The French full-back must prove that he is a world-class player worthy of a big salary in the contract renewal.
These two players have undeniable skills and potential. It is now the right time for them to make the leap and push forward, starting from the next match against Napoli.
AC Milan, it is not the time to panic just yet...
The Rossoneri have dropped many points lately, in the Serie A and Champions League. It is true that there are many absences that may have messed the balance of the squad. However, the injury excuse must not be used anymore, as admitted by Sandro Tonali himself. The tools are there to move forward and the players must start working as a unit again. Individual skills won't do a lot of good if there is no big effort from the rest. It is now time for Pioli and the club management to study this mini-crisis. In fact, it is clear that reinforcements are needed in January to fix the defensive area as well as the midfield which will be missing Ismael Bennacer and Franck Kessié in January as they will both leave to participate in the African cup with their national teams.
