Milan confirmed the purchase of Alexis Saelemaekers to Milan for €7M and so far the Belgian has justified his price and capped it off with a goal against Bologna, his first for Milan.
Many people were skeptical when the virtually unknown player was signed as a temporary replacement for the outgoing Suso. But however Saelemaekers has been more than been a deputy rather taking the vacant RW position by the scruff of its neck off from Leão, Paqueta and Bonaventura
So why does Pioli prefer Saelemakers ?
Simple answer is his workrate. Saelemakers provides an outlet for tireless workrate and helps in the sort of intense press that Pioli seems to have imposed in his tactical tweak since the break.
Simple answer is his workrate. Saelemakers provides an outlet for tireless workrate and helps in the sort of intense press that Pioli seems to have imposed in his tactical tweak since the break.
Notice how fast Saelemaekers runs from the edge of the box to the middle of the field to dispossess Pjanic. This is when Milan were 2-0 down
In attack Saelemaekers offers as an outlet to break the press and start quick counter. In the image below against Lazio you can see how Theo who is being pressed by 3 Lazio players makes a horizontal pass who switches play very quickly for Saelemaekers to run at the Lazio defence. Sadly Saelemaekers made the wrong choice and couldn’t convert it to a goal.
However vs Bologna it was the agressive press followed by Saelemaekers that made skorupski commit an error and kick the ball out to Rebic and the move ended in a goal for Saelemaekers. (He is the furthest player forward)
However vs Bologna it was the agressive press followed by Saelemaekers that made skorupski commit an error and kick the ball out to Rebic and the move ended in a goal for Saelemaekers
WHAT HE CAN IMPROVE
Saelemaekers is only 21 years old. He still has a long way to go and you can see that the player is putting the hours on the training ground and the field. A good attitude is a step to success. Saelemaekers still however has a lot of areas to improve.
While his first touch is good enough his creativity with the ball and his vision are not in requisite with that needed from a right winger. His crossing needs to improve a lot. Dribbling wise Saelemaekers may not be a Messi but he still needs to find way to beat his man and with his pace he could go past. With Saelemaekers Milan have a solid option on the right to press and win balls and help those in midfield but as a right winger Saelemaekers needs to improve his attacking play. Maybe the arrival of Ralf Rangnick can do him a world of good.
Milan have been a different beast ever since football re-started after the pandemic break. In 7 games Milan have won 5 and drawn 2, scoring 20 goals and conceding 8 goals. Not even Juventus could escape Milan’s wrath as they came down from 2-0 to win 4-2 and have wreathed havoc in serie A only second to Atalanta.
So what factors have contributed to this re-birth of Milan. We take a look at a few factors that have essentially contributed to this great form
1. The Re-surgence of Kessie and Hakan Çalhanoglu
Before the break Kessie had only a single goal to show for the season. Rumour mills began speculating and news circulated that Kessie was put on the market. But since the break he has scored 3 goals in 3 matches 2 of them being absolutely gorgeous. What has improved is the shift from a 3 man midfield to a 2 man midfield has played to his strengths. His chemistry with Bennacer is also really strong as both men complement each other well.
Another player who has risen from mediocritiy is Hakan Çalhanoglu. 3 goals and 4 assists in 7 games to remind people once again the player Hakan was in Leverkusen. Being played in a free role behind Ibrahimoviç who has been a proper ball playing centre forward has helped Hakan more freedom and more creativity to play
2. Rebic continuing his form
Before the break Ante Rebic was the revelation of the season. Before the break Rebic had 6 goals and was in red hot form. He didn’t plan to stop anytime soon as he has amassed 4 goals and 2 assists since the break in 7 games. After a period of adjustment Rebic seems to be a terror for Italian defences. Although he does take poor touches and does dodgy dribbles his pace as well his physicality which helps him to hold up the ball (like how he held up the ball to pass to Paqueta in our first goal vs Roma) helps Milan to get around defences more quickly.
3. Off the Ball movement and quick passing combination
When Milan appointed Giampaolo it was inorder to adapt to a quick passing style but he couldn’t impose it in Milan. Pioli too struggled but once Milan got rid of Piatek and Suso and brought in Ibrahimoviç who is a ball playing centre forward unlike Piatek and Samu Castillejo being faster than Suso, Milan’s transition from defence to offense is quicker and more slick.
A perfect example of passing combinations and off the ball movement is Milan’s first goal against Lazio
Players seemed to have developed an understanding with each other. This has made them take up positions or move and station themselves exactly where the person in posession would want them to. This has helped to move the ball faster and catch the oppositon of guard
4. Solidification of the backline thanks to Kjær
Ever since Romagnoli adorned the Rossoneri colours he has never found a centre back partner. An ersatz partnership was developed with Musacchio but it was never for the long run. Milan finally got their man in Danish centre back Simon Kjær. With 1.91 metres in height and pacy he has provided to be a perfect partner for Alessio Romagnoli. He has also brought a sense of leadership and experience to the backline and has even helped to mend an extremely leaky right side which has been a bane for Milan since the times of Gattuso. Kjær has averaged 1.1 successful tackles per game and has 2.8 clearences per match.
So Milan won their crunch midweek game against Parma 3-1 thanks to goals from Kessie, Çalhanoglu and Romagnoli. Milan further their credentials for Europa League and was helped by Napoli drawing against Bologna. Here is a small tactical analysis of the game
1. Parma’s deep block: We all knew that Parma would sit deep and defend against Milan and use their explosive pace upfront to launch counters. Parma had a blow early in the game when Cornelius was injured. They defended in a 4-5-1
2. Milan to counter the deep block played a 3-4-2-1 as against the 3-4-3 they usually play. Smooth short passing and excellent off the ball movement from Ibrahimoviç, Bonaventura and Hakan made it difficult for Parma. As shown in the image below, Hakan would drop deep into midfield to collect the ball and would be followed by Grassi or kulusevski creating space for Theo to make a run or Bonaventura to occupy the space created by parma’s shift. Ibra would then take up Bona’s position
3. Parma counter attacks: Parma as is their modus operandi, counter really fast. In this particular instance, Karamoh plays a quick vertical pass to Gervinho and continues his run. Kjær is distracted by Karamoh’s run while theo is occuped by Kulusevski. This puts Gervinho 1v1 against Alessio who isn’t the fastest defender. Gervinho beats Alessio and goes on against Donna but shoots it well off target.
4. Parma goal: Once again a vertical pass finds Gervinho and he runs into the right wing. Kulusevski makes a run on near to the touch line and draws Theo away. This in tandem with Kjær following Gervinho and that creates a space behind Kjær and Kulusevski. This is spotted by Grassi who makes a run from behind Kessie and darts past a slow to react Biglia. Gervinho spots the the run and puts it to Grassi who crosses it to Kurtic for Parma’s only goal
5. Kessie goal: While the shooting was brilliant individual piece of work, it was borne from some brilliant off the ball movement from Kessie Theo and Hakan. Hakan is in posession in the left wing. He has darmian to his left and Kulusevski blocking his passing lanes. Theo comes from behind Kulusevski and plays a quick 1-2 with Hakan and draws Kulusevski away to open up a passing lane. In the meantime Kessie falls back from his advanced position and recieved the ball which he take a few touches and shoots
In a crucial midweek match, Milan were thrust into a match with Parma. Although Milan fell behind in the first half from a quick counter, a strong performance in the second half saw Milan win 3-1. So here we go into the player ratings
Keeper
Gianluigi Donnarumma (7): Had literally nothing to do until the 60th minute despite conceding the goal.But he showed his class when called upon producing some crucial saves on shots from Kulusevski.
Defenders
Conti (5.5): Has been blowing hot and cold the entire time after the pandemic break. Inconsistent to say the least. Was turned by an opposition player and drawn into a desperate foul for a yellow card. Hauled off at Half time.
Kjær (7): A day after he was made a permanent Milan player Kjær shows his quality. A crucial block on a Kulusevski shot and vital interceptions against Parma’s quick counters
Romagnoli (6.5): Defesinvely sussecptible. Got beaten by the pace of Gervinho a couple of time. Couldn’t close down Kurtic quickly enough but redeemed himself with the games’s second goal.
Theo Hernandez (7): Growing in stature in terms of ring Milan’s important player and cult hero status, some good work of the left wing with Hakan is what helped Kessie set free for his goal. Kept Kulusevski quiet for majority of the game and contributed to the attack
Midfielders
Biglia (5.5): Rusty as ever. Missed his man’s run and failed to prevent the low cross for Parma’s cross. Pressed high and found upfrield players with good passes. But he did not bring energy into the midfield like Bennacer
Kessie (7.5): Milan’s new Deep lying playmaker. Pressed high up the field, spread the player, distributed the ball well and then scored a wonder goal after some intelligent off the ball movement.
Leão (6): A start after a long time Leão was pretty disappointing on the right hand side. Final ball was missing quite a lot. Better as an impact sub maybe
Çalhanoglu (8): 2 assists and a goal. Hardly seem to put a step wrong in the game. The finish was sublime. Finally the Turk showing some form of his Leverkusen days
Bonaventura (7): Dynamic midfield player. Combined well with Ibra and movement was really good. Lacked the finishing touch but provided the assist to Hakan.
Striker
Ibrahimoviç (6.5): Far off from the Ibra Milan are used to seeing. Wasted a few chances from promising situation. Denied a penalty. Could be heard screaming and pointing at teammates. A real leader
Substitutes
Calabria (6.5): Put in a good shift. Made some good driving runs on the rightwing and contributed to the attack when Parma seem to sit back to defend their lead
Rebic (6): Came on for Leão. Was a nuisance for defenders but lacked the final touch
Laxalt (5.5): Came on for Theo but was again very rusty. Had trouble containing Parma’s late surge but by then the game fizzed out
Bennacer: Came on and brought in energy sorely missed by Milan in the first half. It was the foul he won that contributed to the second goal.
Krunic (5.5): Came on for Hakan Çalhanoglu but the game was already decided
Finally Captain America is set to be here. Confirmation from soon to be team-mate Ruben Loftus Cheek that he is set to arrive tomorrow for his medicals. One of the most talented players to have come out of the country how does he scale up.
Playing Style
It is to be noted that Pulisic has played under 3 different managers at Chelsea and therefore his playing style varied under the different coaches. His best season came under Frank Lampard when Lampard preferred a 3-4-2-1 which sometimes worked as a 3-5-2.
Lampard as I mentioned above preferred a 3-4-2-1 formation where he preferred his team to keep their off the ball structure and break on counter using their speed. Usually Pulisic alongside Giroud played as the furthest 2 men upfront trying to break and exploit the space left by the full backs. Blessed with incredible close control and acceleration, Pulisic is extremely hard to knock off the ball and this meant he would often get fouled a lot.
Even though he wasn’t a great visionary passer, Pulisic would often create 1-2 passing combinations with Giroud for quick ball progression
His skillset is a potent weapon for teams that play during transition. During Lampard’s tenure, Pulisic played more inside than the wide areas sometime facing the areas between the half space and the touchline always looking to dribble inside rather than a cross
Under Potter, he played as a LW in a 4-3-3 formation. Often staying wide, he dragged the full back towards the wide areas to make space for Mason Mount who played as the Mezalla in the midfield 3. In a more traditional winger role, Pulisic would hug the touchline and try to cross. the ball but his initial instinctstict is to always scan the environment and dribble the ball with progression. In this game Nottingham Forest have settled into a mid-block, therefore Pulisic comes out of his position to recieve the ball and spread the play.
Although he wasn’t a great passer/crosser with time he has inculcated this into his skillset making very accurate crosses.
Pulisic always was very aware of his surroundings. Not always did he try to dribble past players. If the option was not there he would look to make a safe pass and keep possession instead of risking a turnover. When playing for Lampard’s Chelsea Pulisic was mostly expected to keep shape and as the first line of defense, do not give space between the line and covering passing lanes. However under Potter who played a more expansive style of play Pulisic had to cover for Cucurella/Chillwel
whenever they would join the attack and then get countered. Pulisic would track back and help out in defense as well.
STRENGTHS
Technical ability: First touch and close control. For any player that players in the forward areas, it is imperative that they have these 2 qualities because they have to move quickly before defenders close down the space.
Acceleration: In terms of top speed, Pulisic may not be the quickest, but to reach his top speed it dosent take long and his ability to turn defenders and accelerate leaving space between him and the defender is extremely hard to defend especially in terms of transitions.
Ability to recieve in tight areas (press resistant): With his excellent first touch, Pulisic is resistant to being pressed as he cannot be disposssesed easily.
1v1: Pioli in his press conference spoke of how he needed wingers to be good at 1v1 ability. With acceleration and good touch, Pulisic can beat his man and take defenders out of the game.
WEAKNESS
Injury prone: Not a secret, Christian Pulisic’s injuries are extremely demoralising. He has missed upto 14 games last season and with an extremely competitive squad at Chelsea he has seen gametime come and go.
Aerial Ability: Standing at 5ft 10, Pulisic isn’t the most aerially dominant player and not a very big asset for set pieces. Although he has a good leap he rarely participates in serial duels.
STATS AND COMPARISON
To get a better evaluation of Pulisic’s number we take a dive into his 19/20 season with Frank Lampard. A season where he had 9 Goals and 4 assists in the season.
Against an expected goal of 9 Pulisic scored 9 goals which means he was clinical that particular season. Whenever he got a chance he took it. His expected assists were 2.7 from which he got 4 assists.
When looking at Shot Creating Actions, Pulisic has almost 4.55 shots per 90 while he had 0.84 Goal Creating Action per game. This is a very healthy number. Worth nothing that he average almost 1 Goal Creating Action per game.
The best way to measure 1v1 dribble is to measure Successful dribble per 90. And Pulisic average 2.88 successful takeon’s per 90
Lastly Pulisic draws 1.57 fouls per game and has an aerial duel success of 30.8%
In this graph I have taken
Y axis= Shot Creating Actions + Goal creating actions X Axis = Take ons completed per 90
Pulisic in his best season has stats that match that of Rafa Leao, our best attacker. He has a high amount of Shot and Goal creating actions and he has extremely superior 1v1 ability. A certainly good upgrade on Diaz if he stays fit
WHERE CAN PIOLI USE HIM
Something still in its molten form, Pioli’s ideas are yet to take shape for the new seasons. Rumours about changing to a 4-3-3 or keeping a 4-2-3-1 are still flying around with Milan still making their moves on the market. As somebody who likes to progress the ball with carries (dribble) more than passing it will massively help Pioli in his transitional style of play. Averaging almost 5.6 carries per 90 , Pulisic has shown that he can provide the impetus needed to go forward.
With his ability to receive the ball in tight areas in opposition half he can use his dribbling ability to either draw defenders towards himself or dribble past defenders to create chaos in the opposition half. He receives the ball nearly 9 times per 90 minutes from the defensive half.
Conclusion In Conclusion, Milan have once again placed their bet on another under appreciated talent in World Football. One aspect of this deal that does not get spoken about is the Commercial one. Red Bird would like to make the Milan brand grow and they feel that Pulisic would make the brand grow. If Milan can keep Pulisic injury free and Pioli can manage his workload then Milan have a very potent weapon on their hands
Earlier with Sevilla mathematically qualified for Uefa Champions League 2020-21 edition it had a financial implication towards Milan’s coffers. Sevilla are now obligated to redeem Suso for €23 million + Bonuses which would come up to €24 Million Given that Milan purchased Suso for €1 Million Milan make a profit of €23 Million on the player. Positive impact on the balance sheet and money to be reinvested for the transfer market.
We take a stock of the possible sales and wages saved from the possible outgoing player movement in the mercato
Please note:- 1. These are estimates based on rumours and option to buy clauses. It may not be completely accurate. 2. Due to the corona pandemic uefa will judge clubs for the period of July 2019 to June 2021
Player sales
As discussed earlier Milan make revenue of €24 Million from the sale of Suso.
In the winter market Milan had sold off Piatek for €28M to Hertha Berlin. As cited by Sky sports Milan had brought Piatek for 35M in 2019 and gave him a contract until 2023. His book value when he was sold is €27M
Milan also loaned Caldara to Atalanta in the winter for a loan with option to buy for €15 Million which Atalanta seem keen to trigger. If Atalanta trigger his loan in 2021 his book value will be €14.4M and Milan can make a profit of 0.6M
Another player on the transfer list is Uruguay left back Diego Laxalt. Interest from Russia and Italy has been shown for the player. His book value is currently €7.4M. If Milan sell him at €7M then they incurr a minimal loss
Youth Academy product Calabria will be moved on for pure capital gain since his acquisition cost is 0. I think Milan can estimate his value at around €10M.
Another sale we can expect is of Paqueta. His Book value is €25 Million and if Milan sell him for €25 Million it maybe a good deal for them.
Another sure departee is Ricardo Rodriguez. With him coming down to the final year of his contract his book value is only €3.75 M and if Milan manage to sell him for €5M as per the option in his loan deal with PSV Milan make €1.25M profit in the books.
Andre Silva and Rebic looks to be a straight swap deal. But in terms of accounting it will not be counted as zero. Silva whose book value is €15M will be swapped with Rebic. Both clubs value their players at €25M. Which means that Milan will make roundabout €10M profit from his sale.
Krunic who has been recently linked with Torino has a book value of €6.4M If Milan can sell him for €7M then we make a profit of €0.6M
Musacchio has a book value of €4.5M and is on the last year of his contract. With his injury it looks extremely unlikely that he will be able to be sold
Duarte looks like the candidate who could leave. His book value is €8M. But there is no news of him leaving yet.
Add this to the player sales of cutrone and Thiago Djalo which is a combined €28M.
Total revenue for the club at these estimate values = Piatek (28)+ Suso (24)+ Caldara (15)+ Laxalt (7)+ Calabria (10)+ Rodriguez (5)+ Silva (25) + Paqueta (25) + Krunic (7) = 146M revenue.
The total profit from these sales = 75M
Wages saved
Wages saved is not a direct income for the club. It is a mere estimation of the money the club saves with either players leaving the club or Contracts expiring.
In italy the wages reported are those after tax. However for the clubs accounts the club pays the salary to the play and the tax to the government which is a direct cost to the club. It is called gross wage. Tax in Italy is 50%.
Wage of the player x 2 x (no: of years left if the player is sold) = wages saved
Suso = 3.5 x 2 x 2 = 14M
Piatek = 1.75 x 2x 3 = 10.5
Paqueta = 1.75 x 2 x 3 = 7.5
Caldara = 2.2M x 2 x 2 = 8.8 +2.2= 11M (left in January)
Calabria = 2M x 2 x 2 = 8M
Biglia = 3.5 x 2 = 7M
Borini= 2.5 ( he left in January)
Reina = 3 x 2 = 6M
Rodriguez = 2.1 x 2 = 4.2M
Laxalt = €1.8 x 2 x 2 = 3.6M
Bonaventura = €2M x 2 = 4M
Giampaolo= 2M x 1= 2M
Total Wages saved = €80.3M
2. Europa League
Milan in the 2018/19 season played in the Europa League and was knocked out in the group stages. In the 2017/18 season Milan went till the round of 16. Now taking into account these figures they earned we can draw an estimate as to how much Milan can earn if they qualify next season.
However Milan had to pay €6M as fine for its FFP breach and hence its revenue got cut short.
With corona virus rampant it is not clear as to whether crowds will be allowed inside the stadium and clubs can cash in on ticket sales but Milan can expect a minimum of €15M in its eatimated revenue next season if they qualify for Europa League.
If the rumours are true and Milan are giving Pioli a budget of €80M+ 50% of player sales we recokon he can look upto a budget of €140-150M warchest to spend next season.
A battle for Europa league places ensured on Sunday as Milan went to San Paolo to take on Gennaro Gattuso’s men. Milan were the favourite after coming down from 2-0 to beat Juve. Here is the tactical analysis
1st Half
Milan as usual set-up in thier 3-4-3 in posession with Paqueta set to tuck in give space to conti to make overlapping runs while Hakan and Rebic took up the half spaces on the edge of the penalty. At times Ibra would drop off to relieve pressure off the midfield and while paqueta took up his momentary #9 role. In defence Milan were in a 4-4-1-1. Milan took man to man marking while ibra was free to press the centre backs of Napoli who were bringing out the ball from the back
How Milan attackedHow Milan defended
Napoli meanwhile attacked in a 3-5-2 or a 3-4-3. Depending upon which flank they attacked from which was mostly in the left wing the winger would tuck inside while the advanced Midfielder or mezalla would occupy the wideman role. Insigne would also cut inside to give space to Mario Rui to make overlapping runs.
Napoli’s attack. Notice how insigne tucks inside creating space for Mario Rui to overlapd
In defence they defended in a 4-4-2 in a different set up. Depending upon which flank Milan would bring out the ball from the centre back would be pressed by a mezalla. For example if romagnoli has posession he would be pressed by Fabian Ruiz while Lobotka will occupy his position and make it a narrow and tight 4-4-2
Napoli’s defence
The understanding between Mertens-Insigne-Callejon is fundamental to Gattuso’s attacking play. Insigne and Mertens would often swap positions and this unpredictability made Milan’s defenders unable to track the attackers movements. Either they would have an inter play and whip a quick diagonal ball out to Callejon who would make deep runs or they would cut inside and have the full backs make crosses for them to score.
Napoli’s pressing was also quite agressive. They would have a narrow block overloading the centre and when Milan tried to attack on the wings they would create a 3v2 situation and dispossess the player while Mertens came inside or dropped to start a counter
You can see how rebic is being pressed in this example. All his passing options have been blocked and he dwells on the ball for too long and gets disposessed
Milan’s goal came from a good passing combination coupled with good movement. Romagnoli quickly switched the play to Conti who found Paqueta occupying the half space. Paqueta draws out Kalidou Kouilybaily creating space for Rebic to run into. He then is found by a brilliant ball by Bennacer. Callejon misses the run of Theo, and Di Lorenzo is drawn away by Ibrahimoviç. Theo blasted the ball into the box
2nd Half
Milan subbed in Saelemaeckers for Paqueta and the impact was almost instant.
But then Napoli took the lead with a good bit of individual skill and passing movement. A poor pass by Rebic was intercepted by Kouilybaily who found Mario Rui who made a run while Mertens was on the edge of the box. Rui drew nearly 4 players including Kessie who lost his man Fabian who played a quick horizontal ball to Callejon. Mertens made an unmarked run into the box and met Callejon’s cross and a poor bit of keeping from Donna made sure Napoli took the lead
A clever run from Bonaventura made in which Maksimovic fouled him was given as a penalty which Kessie converted into a goal
On the onset of the 70th minutes both side looked tired. Milan after a gruelling run of fixtures can be happy that they took 7 out of a possible 9 but are still far away from being safe. Milan have Parma, Bologna, Sassuolo before facing Atalanta. I feel our results against Parma, Sassuolo and Bologna would shape our bid for Europa league qualification.
Side Note
In my analysis of the match against Juventus I had noted that Paqueta as a winger does not work. The only reason I seen him starting is because of injuries to Samu and fatigue for Saelemaeckers.
A rather immature 5 minutes from Saelemaeckers saw him sent off making Pioli hoping to see Samu Castillejo fit for the encounter vs Parma
Gattuso’s side look a different breed but not unfamiliar from the Milan in 2018/19. He has them playing a mashup version of SarriBall and his Gattusoball tactics. With technically better players it is good to see his career blossoming
Early Today, A.C.Milan announced a partnership with entertainment company RocNation. Described as a unique, first of its industry partnership Milan first started its journey with Roc Nation during the pandemic forced break with RocNation notching up a concert to help the victims of Corona virus. Let’s look at who RocNation are and what this partnership could include
Who are Roc Nation
RocNation is an entertainment company founded by wealthy Musician Jay-Z in 2008. Their main activities include Label records, concert production, talent company, apparells, brand management of players and now brand management of clubs with Milan as it’s first venture.
Artists managed by Roc Nation: Alicia Keys, Shakira, Mariah Carey, Jay-Z, J Cole, Jay Park,Rihanna.
Footballers Managers by Roc Nation: Kevin De Bruyne, Lukaku, Eric Bailly, Marcus Rashford, Reece James.
Social Media Penetration
According to the Roc Nation website, their total Social media count is 1.6 Billion with 625 Million instagram followers and 485 Million Facebook followers.
What It means for Us
Basically RocNation and A.C.Milan will have a collaboration. These comes with a multitude of benefits. The most visible one will be the creation of A.C.Milan as a brand and it’s penetration into markets which the club couldnt reach earlier.
With its wide follower count and reach, RocNation can help people who watch football understand and appreciate Milan as a club and our rich history.
Another benefit is merchandise collaboration. Roc nation has its brand of apparells and with this new partnership it will have Milan’s brand and it’s logo on a variety of its merchandise.
Another benefit is digital activation and excution which would mean an online brand awareness campaign as well social media interactive posts.
Once the nee stadium is complete Milan could also hosts concerts by International stars on the RocNation roster and it would mean additional income for the club.
We could also see more content about the club and the players floating in social media
Conclusion
Milan were pioneers in football back when we had our glory days. It is good to see that Milan are taking a new initiative. With internet and smart phones taking over every household creating an online presence and brand awareness for a culturally and Sportingly historical club is essential
In a night that will go a long way in the memories of Milan fans, Milan best Scudetto champions Juventus 4-2 after coming from 2 goals down. Thanks to goals from Ibrahimoviç, Leão, Kessie and Rebic, Milan get the full 3 points and solidify their claim for a Europa league spot next season. Here is a tactical analysis of the game
1st Half
Milan switched back to the 4-4-2 formation that it uses before the forced break due to corona. Ibrahimoviç played as their furthest striker while Paqueta slotted in on the the left hand side and Saelemaeckers kept his place on the right in the absence of Castillejo. In attack Milan attacked with a 3-4-3/ 3-4-1-2 formation while they defended in a 4-4-1-1 formation
Juventus meanwhile played in their usual 4-3-3. Without Dybala, Chiellini and De Ligt the depth of the Bianconeri were tested. The front 3 were Ronaldo, Higuain and Bernadeschi while Rugani slotted in with Bonucci in the place of De Ligt. In attack Juventus could be seen using 3-4-3/3-4-1-2/3-5-2. The defenders would bring out the ball from the back and play quick vertical passes to the midfielders. A few elements of Napoli Sarriball could be seen with this Juve team.
The 1st half saw both team cancel our each other as Milan sat quite high and tried to get behind Juve’s high and quite agressive press. Milan once again used various passing combinations to get around the press and create chances but nothing came out of it.
Juve’s best chance came from Cristiano Ronaldo who drifted out wide on the left and cut back onto his left foot and unleashed a shot which took a deflection and went for a corner. As the game grew, Juventus grew into the game and you could see bentancur and Rabiot dropping in and combining with either pjanic or the full backs.
Juventus exploited Paqueta’s weak defensive skills as bentancur combined with cuardado or pjanic couple of times. Paqueta was even forced to challenge Bernadeschi as Theo often went up the pitch and isn’t as accomplished as Hakan when it comes to defending.
2nd Half
A half that saw 6 goals in total will have a lot to say. Juventus took the lead through a solo effort Rabiot. Rabiot picked up the ball from the right wing and dribbled past Theo. Higuain made a outward run which drew Kjær out of position and freed up space. Rabiot beat Alessio and outpaced him before shooting and opening the score
1st goal
Few minutes later Milan were 2 goals down when Cuardado played a quick vertical pass to a waiting Ronaldo and a total miscommunication between our 2 CB’s freed Cristiano up to make it 2-0.
2nd Juventus goal
Juventus settled in nicely and pressed Milan horizontally very well often using upto 5 people in the press. To counter this, Kessie and Bennacer would drop in for Alessio to pass the ball and with quick passing combination with bennacer or even Hakan Kessie would break the press and move into a counter attack.
Juve’s press and Milan breaking the press
The first goal came via a handball off bonucci. After some good work on the left hand side between Rebic and Theo, the ball bounced off Bonucci’s hand and became a penalty which was converted by Zlatan.
The second goal was the coup dé grace. Once again Milan broke out from the back with Theo who passed the ball to Kessie. Kessie invited 2 Juve players to press him and released the ball quickly to Theo. And with 2 vertical passes Milan played the ball to Rebic who switched play to Leão waiting on the wings. Leao dribbled towards the centre. Leao played a horizontal ball to Kessie who combined with Hakan and Zlatan who held up the ball well against pressure from Rugani who passed it back to an onrushing Kessie. A bit of poor defending from Bonucci and Rugani and Kessie finished off a brilliant pass and move from a tight spot aka a deflection to make it 2-2 for Milan.
Kessie’s goal
Milan who were defending a bit deeper than usual was using Rebic upfield as the solo man who was targetting Juve’s weak spot in Rugani. Juve turned up the ante and used both full back to attack Milan. Pioli then brought on Bonaventura and this restored the numbers in midfeild. Ronaldo who was isolated until that point dropped deep to get the ball from Bonucci but was tag teamed and tackled by Bonaventura and Hakan before they released Rebic on the counter. Rugani fouled Rebic who tried his best to hold off Rugani but Leão -unmarked- sped towards the ball from the right wing and scored off a deflection from a Rugani who was once again exposed. Milan scored 3 goals in 6 minutes. The only goal threat Juve conjured up after this was from a corner when Rugani got a free header but a top save from Donna kept it out.
Ronaldo closed out by Milan players and started the counter for the 3rd goal. The effect of Bona’s substitution was instant
The last goal, which might look like a silly mistake, came off smart pressing by milan. Matuidi was chased all the way behind by Leão who backheeled it to Sandro who took a turn and brought the ball to his left feet. Milan pressed high up the field. Bennacer covered bentancur and Leao cut off the passing channel to Matuidi. Sandro could not pass to Rugani via a ground pass becaude of Rebic. He then foolishly attempted a cross field pass which was interrupted by Bona and passed to Rebic who was free in the centre. The comeback complete and the champions were beaten.
Smart Press by Milan forced the error
Notes
I maybe pre-mature in making this assessment but Paqueta is not fit to play as a wide player. Overlapping full backs or overloads on his side with pacy players puts him on a difficult part. His best role would be in the centre. Rebic had a game of 2 halves. While he was poor in the first half, his constant pressing in the second as well as runs behind the defence tormenting Rugani worked for Milan. Hoping for more consistency. Saelemaeckers may not be the most technical player but he provides a outlet for quick counters for Milan. He has shown to coach Pioli as to why he deserves a spot with his workrate especially in defence
Sarriball hasn’t really taken flight in Juventus. Both their goals came from individual brilliance rather than goals borne out of brilliance of the system in Napoli. Often the pattern of movements and the chemistry in midfield from Juve seemed a bit off as they seemed to get on each other’s foot.
In one of the best performances from Milan this season, Milan gave a serious blow to Lazio’s title hopes with a 3-0 win. Goals from Hakan Çalhanoglu, Zlatan Ibrahimoviç and Ante Rebic ensured Milan take all 3 points from the Olympico fortress with a surprising clean sheet. We take a tactical analysis at how Milan outplayed Lazio and won this game
Basic formations
Milan started out in their 4-2-3-1 with their talisman Ante Rebic on the bench as Pioli opted for experience of Zlatan. A controversial decision to start Bonaventura ahead of Paqueta had everybody (including me) scratching their heads. Lazio in their usual 3-5-2 or a 3-1-4-2 with Luis Alberto partnering Correa up top.
1st Half
Lazio started off more brightly getting more into their rhytmn early in the game with Luis Alberto and Correa working in tandem with one of them dropping off and another pushing forward. When in posession Lazio had their centre back counter press Milan by playing a very high line. Radu and Patric would often even make overlapping runs past their wingbacks to cross the ball into the box. Lazio build out of the back with Acerbi their main player. One of their tactic was to have Milinkovic Savic supplied with Long balls and he in turn would use his tall frame to bring the ball down and it would beat the forward line of press. If that didn’t work Luis Alberto would drop deep and collect the ball via short pass.
Milan pressed Lazio very high up the field initially. The first line of defence i.e Bona and Zlatan were press to cut off passing lanes for the Lazio defenders trying to prevent the diagonal ball between the centre backs to let them go free
Tight marking and pressing
If anything Milan did well yesterday it was to defend with a plan. Close marking and everybody sticking to the plan was executed upto the last detail. Lazio’s 2 main players Savic and Alberto were picked up by Kessie and Bennacer not giving them a minute to rest and constantly put them under pressure whenever they had the ball or moved to recieve to ball. Another wonderful aspect is how Bonaventura who had a free role yesterday, joined Saelemaeckers if Lazio build up through the right to press Parolo and Jony or he would join with Hakan to press Lazarri. Bona was also seen marking Lucas Leiva leaving Zlatan to press the back 3 of Lazio. Kjær had a tight hold of Correa not giving him an inch of space
Milan’s off the ball marking. Notice the free role of Bona
When Milan were pressed to the sidelines esp on the left hand side by Lazio, Saelemaeckers would drift into the centre or Bonaventura would drfit in deeper and Milan would either make smart triangles and find Bonaventura in space or Theo would do a 1-2 with Hakan and play a long ball to Saelemaeckers to unleash a counter.
Milan’s 1st goal was a treat to watch. With Lazio defending narrow and not giving much space Milan created an opening via some excellent passing. Bennacer passed the ball to an onrushing Bonaventura who found Hakan in the half space on the left wing edge of the box. He played a diagonal ball to Zlatan. Now Hakan was marked by Lazarri and Savic creating a 1v2 situation, but bennacer who recieved the ball from Ibra drew our Savic from his position to defend Bennacer who was space. This created space between Hakan and Lucas Leiva and bennacer passed it to Ibra who smartly spotted the space for Hakan to run into and gave it to him. Hakan who was in point 1 recieves the ball and beats Leiva to reach point number 2 to shoot obtaining a big defelction.
Bennacer draws Savic out and passes to ibra who puts Hakan into space for the goal
As I mentioned above, Lazio had Milan pressed to the left to our defensive third but some smart traiangles saw bona who played a quick diagnoal pass to Saelemaeckers but couldn’t make anything out it. And then Milan won a penalty with the ball hitting the arm of Radu which was a very harsh call on Lazio. Ibrahimoviç scored a lucky goal as the ball crept into the goal beneat Strakosha who saved the initial shot. Milan were forced into an early change with Paqueta coming on for Hakan as Hakan picked up a bruised leg
2nd Half
With no recognised strikers, Simeone Inzaghi threw on Adekanye instead of Leiva. Milan brought on Rebic instead of Zlatan who looked in some discomfort at the break. The change seemed to have worked instantly as Parolo dropped deeper and Luis Alberto was back to his deeper position which he thrives in. With Adekanye playing up top ut it helped correa to peel off to the wide space or drop deeper and once even playing a 1-2 with Adekanye to test Donnarumma from an acute angle.
Lazio in the second half
Lazio’s best chance came from a poor free kick from bennacer as it created a counter opportunity. Adekanye fought off a challenge and put it to Luis Alberto making it a 2v1 with Lazarri and Alberto against Conti. Conti from the corner of his eye spotted Lazarri’s run and did the smart thing and played him offside with Luis Alberto taking an extra second to release the ball. Lazarri did go through to score but was ruled offside.
OFFSIDE !!! Well played by Conti
Milan’s third goal was a thing of beauty. Theo interrupted a pass towards Lazzari and charged forward taking Lazzari out of the equation. Savic chased after Theo, while Vavros was busy marking Rebic. Theo’s run distracted Vavaros, and he along with Patric were busy setting up a pseudo roadblock for while rebic quietly peeled off into the left wing unmarked while theo played a pass into Bona
Theo’s run and pass
Bonaventura was blocked by a wall of Acerbi, Jordan Lukaku and Vavaros but nobody spotted Rebic completely free on the left hand side. Patric was marking Theo while Lukaku was trying to disposses bona and Acerbi was partially distracted by alexis. Bona thread the ball throug and Rebic finished the move for a 3 goal lead.
Lazio never recovered and Simeone Inzaghi opted to rest his star player and withrew Savic for Cataldi. Milan who have Juventus on Tuesday kept knocking the ball around, all except for Theo to make the same roan which got Milan their third goal. One such chance got him a 1v1 vs the keeper which he missed.
Earlier I couldn’t give enough credit to Bennacer and Kessie who were the players who made a change. Keepeing Savic and Alberto quiet, they even switched position while marking players and during build up play which confused Lazio a lot. Kessie has his Fly Emirates man of the match well desevred. Milan go into San Siro with some good form having scored 11 goals in 5 games and with no Dybala and De Ligt Milan can re-invigorate some interest in the title race
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