Best sign of the Italian Super Cup.
Milan decided to take a difficult step
This is difficult, mainly because management has to admit its own mistake. This summer we parted ways with Stefano Pioli, who was building a long-term project – and brought the Rossoneri the championship and vice-championship. After a prolonged crisis, this apparently was not enough for the bosses. Last summer, the Milanese abandoned a coach who was delivering results, and they did so without first finding a suitable replacement. They appointed Paulo Fonseca, who had previously shown nothing worthy of a big club’s attention.
The last four months for Milan have been the same as the choice of coach – contradictory. The Rossoneri began to show results at the average level – while such important matches as the Milan derby and the Champions League meeting with Real Madrid ended in victory for Fonseca’s team. He was given a second chance for a long time.
There was no future with Fonseca
Again, because Milan did not have a clear plan at the time of Pioli’s resignation. The club had already decided to move and even started negotiations with Antonio Conte – but as the summer approached, the specialist made contact with Napoli and approached the Neapolitans. The Rossoneri found themselves without their favorite and it was too late to give up. Fonseca in this situation is a repeat of Napoli’s history a year earlier. They also did not designate the best candidate to continue the vector set or restart. And they quickly recognized their mistake, by firing the coach.
Fonseca was also at Milan until his first mistake. They weren’t going to tolerate it anymore. The Portuguese did not inspire confidence in his ability to build a top club capable of challenging for titles. It’s just that in his career there weren’t even such examples that one could cling to. He is a mentor for European middle farmers, nothing more.
There is no way to save the season – Conceicao must be given carte blanche
Milan are now eighth in Serie A. There are five points left in the top five. During this time, there were enough failures – a draw with Roma, Genoa, Cagliari. Defeats to Napoli and Atalanta highlighted an unpleasant truth: inexperienced and unstable newcomers have a better title chance than Milan. To rectify the situation, they followed the example of Manchester United. The Mancunians took the Sporting coach, whom Liverpool wanted to appoint this summer – and now the Rossoneri have recruited former Porto coach Sergio Conceicao.
Sergio has many more achievements on his CV than Paulo. The Porto specialist became champion of Portugal three times and vice-champion of Portugal twice, and won the Portuguese Cup and Super Cup. Based on his time working at Porto, he is a very good candidate for Milan. But you should definitely not follow in the footsteps of Naples, who then changed coaches again.
Conceicao can bring results for a long time. But we should say goodbye to this season now. Its results should not affect its future prospects. Sergio is putting the team in a terrible state. It is now better to focus on restructuring and mentally accept the failures that have already occurred.
Motta is trustworthy
The results of the “old lady” are not much better. This summer, the team also let go of the coach they had worked with for many years. And they also fell out of the championship race – the Turin team is in sixth place and is eight to nine points behind the top three. The difference is that the Bianconeri better assessed the risks and were able to recruit the coach they wanted to lead their project.
Thiago Motta showed excellent results with a rather modest Bologna, and he has long formed the image of a progressive coach. The club understood that his approaches were radically different from the system of Massimiliano Allegri, with whom he had worked previously. The new manager will have to build a team from scratch.
And as all this was initially taken into account, even against the backdrop of seventh place, Motte is not likely to give up. The bosses are patiently awaiting the results of the restructuring.
The transfer window will play an important role
Thiago should instead be supported in transfers – changes to the squad are still necessary. Thus, the Turin team has set its sights on the rental of defender Disasi this winter. They also plan to strengthen the attack group. Dusan Vlahovic does not suit Motta – the coach needs a more versatile striker who understands the structure of pressing and does not break it. The Serbian is therefore considering a new team, while the coach insists on the transfer of Joshua Zirkzee from Manchester United – they have already worked together in Bologna.
Another option is Marcus Rashford. Amorim is in no hurry to put his pupil back on the starting line – and this is a completely logical step. The winger has lost interest in football and has lost all his professionalism. True, it is precisely for this reason that Rashford is an extremely dangerous asset that can ruin the team. In this regard, renting is the best option. If the Englishman correctly perceives what is happening to him, he will return to his level – and then he can be bought out. Otherwise, the Turinese will not lose anything.
The Pioli and Allegri clashes were boring
The teams were led by pragmatic coaches who prefer reliability to flashiness. In the last five official matches of the team (the November match does not count – then Motta and Fonseca were already leading the teams), they scored four goals between them. Twice we played a goalless draw. The confrontation between Motta and Conceicao should be much more interesting.
Soccer.ru predictions: Juventus seems preferable. By the balance of the roster and its strength, by the qualities of the head coach and his achievements. The Bianconeri will successfully qualify for the Super Cup final. There will be a match with Inter, who dismantled Atalanta.
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