A mountain to climb [Newsletter]

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Oct 30, 2024

AC Milan headed into the clash against Napoli with the hopes of claiming three very important points. However, things went sideways immediately and when it was all said and done, the Partenopei extended their lead at the top of the standings. If the Scudetto still is a realistic target for the Rossoneri, they now have a mountain to climb.

Paulo Fonseca was forced to deal with some pretty heavy absences as a result of the Bologna postponement, with Theo Hernandez and Tijjani Reijnders subsequently suspended for the big clash. Matteo Gabbia also had to throw in the towel due to a calf injury, and given just how well he has played this season, the blow of his absence was on par with the other aforementioned duo.

Nevertheless, seeing as Milan’s squad depth has actually improved over the last couple of years, fans were at least expecting the team to put up a good fight. While it wasn’t a dreadful performance from the Rossoneri, Napoli got the game exactly where they wanted it and looked comfortable throughout the 90 minutes - despite having had a lot less rest than their opponents.

Eleven points (!) now separate the two sides after ten rounds, and as said at the start, Milan have a mountain to climb if the Scudetto remains one of their targets. It’s still relatively early in the season, that much is true, but there is no doubt that Fonseca’s men would need a near-perfect run over the next two months. Because once we reach the halfway point, you can often tell how it’s going to end up.

Fonseca was surprisingly optimistic after the full-time whistle, almost to the point of delusion as pointed out by some fans, stating that he is ‘more confident than ever’ that there is a bright future ahead. The performance wasn’t dreadful as already mentioned, but it’s also a bit difficult to understand how the manager came to a ‘1+1 = 3’ conclusion after dropping three crucial points.

There is obviously nuance to what happened underneath the San Siro floodlights, not just because of the heavy absences but also Napoli’s incredible efficiency in front of goal. Of course, the latter is what separates the good from the bad sides but it also points to the fact that Milan aren’t an absolute trainwreck. Still, not being a trainwreck was hardly the goal as we kicked off the season.

Where we will go from here is very difficult to say. Excluding the Champions League, Milan ideally need to win their next five games - Monza, Cagliari, Juventus, Empoli, Atalanta - and that is easier said than done. Potential January reinforcements are also a hot topic, certainly justified, and this is something we will take a look at in this week’s bonus article - is there any budget for it?

News Bulletin

➤ After our bonus podcast picking apart Milan Futuro's struggles this season, they naturally clinched three massive points as they prevailed 2-0 against Perugia on Sunday. Kevin Zeroli was the hero as he scored a stunning bicycle kick, clawing Daniele Bonera's side out of the bottom three.

➤ Milan Primavera returned to winning ways after a bit of a recent rut with a 3-1 victory against Fiorentina. The goals came from Tartaglia, Eletu and Perrucci, sealing a deserved win after the hosts had levelled the game.

➤ Naturally there has been a lot of fall-out after the defeat to Napoli. Going 11 points behind the Partenopei has subjected the management's summer decisions to scrutiny again, such as going with Fonseca over Conte and Pavlovic over Buongiorno. Nonetheless, the Milan boss has claimed he is 'more confident than ever' after what he adjudged to be a good performance.

➤ In transfer news, the main developments concern Tijjani Reijnders. Fabrizio Romano claims that renewal talks are underway between Milan and his entourage, while reports have spoken of interest from the likes of Liverpool, Manchester City and Barcelona.

➤ On Monday the Shareholders' Meeting took place to approve the 2023-24 accounts, which we have broken down into the key figures. Milan's CFO answered questions on the idea of making more big sales, signing players for a maximum of €20m and the renewals that must be done. Meanwhile, the exact figures of the 2023 summer signings were confirmed.

➤ Our features in the past week include a tactical analysis of the win over Club Brugge in the Champions League, a look into why Fonseca's management of Leao might just light a spark and a deep-dive into the farce that led to the Bologna postponement.