Another trophy out of sight [Newsletter]
It never ended up being a great evening at San Siro for AC Milan, facing Atalanta in the Coppa Italia quarter-finals. A win would have sent the Rossoneri through to face Fiorentina in the semi-finals, then with real hopes of reaching the final and also lifting the trophy in Rome. Instead, however, it was another frustrating evening as has been the case many times this season.
Compared to the game against Cagliari, the starting eleven was certainly more ‘standard’ for Milan this time out. In fact, you could argue it was the only possible XI for the Rossoneri and the truth is that they had a very positive start to the game, dominating possession and slowly but steadily breaking down Atalanta. When Rafael Leao scored a lovely goal, therefore, most of us thought it would be a great evening.
That never ended up being the case, unfortunately, as Atalanta completed their comeback in the second half. Stefano Pioli can certainly be questioned for what happened after, bringing on the likes of Filippo Terracciano and Jan-Carlo Simic. Nothing wrong with fielding those guys, but the decision to play a 3-4-3 of sorts with Yunus Musah on the right and the new signing on the left didn’t make sense.
And where do we even begin with VAR? It’s understandable why the referee decided to give the penalty because it did ultimately look like one at first glance. The replay, however, clearly showed that Alex Jimenez actually got a touch on the ball. Was it a clear and obvious error by the referee? Maybe not, but not getting vindication with the potential handball late on makes the situation even worse.
It’s just a shame that the Coppa Italia exit was the result of both officiating controversy and poor individual displays by the Rossoneri men. Regardless of the dubious tactical changes, in fact, a lot of them needed to do better against what is a very effective Atalanta side. In any case, the encounter with Roma at the weekend will be crucial to understanding where to go next.
The Scudetto trophy appears long gone, with even Pioli himself predicting Inter to win (what was that all about, by the way?). The Europa League trophy, meanwhile, will be incredibly difficult to get even if the romantics in us would like to see a final against Liverpool. If we cannot even reach the Coppa Italia semi-finals, though, we shouldn’t even be talking about that.
Let’s see what the rest of the January transfer window will bring us, as this will obviously matter in the aforementioned debates.
News bulletin
➤ In striking similarity to the first team, Milan’s Primavera side were knocked out of the Coppa Italia at the quarter-final stage on Wednesday after throwing away a lead. They were 2-0 up against Fiorentina and lost 4-2. That came after a 2-0 win away in the league against Frosinone, however.
➤ Pioli and his side walked off the field after the cup exit to jeers from fans, who are aware that another trophy had vanished. The writing seems on the wall for the head coach, with the 2023-24 season at risk of becoming very forgettable.
➤ The performance seemed to echo the words of Paolo Scaroni before the game, who bizarrely questioned the need for the Coppa Italia before insisting Milan must win it. Speaking of Scaroni, an update arrived on the new stadium project earlier in the week.
➤ The 'Popovic Saga' has been interesting to follow over the last 48 hours. The Serbian talent arrived in Italy with Milan totally caught by surprise, and while the negotiations continued over a free transfer they have more or less abandoned their pursuit for a couple of reasons.
➤ Rade Krunic’s time at AC Milan should very soon be coming to an end after a disappointing last few weeks as an agreement has reportedly been reached with Fenerbahce over a sale.
➤ Milan are still in the market for a centre-back, and Di Marzio reported after the Atalanta loss that there are three names being considered. One is from Brest, one is from Sevilla but the 'dream' remains a player currently in Serie A.
In case you missed it
Make sure to check out the latest podcast episode, and our latest bonus podcast in which the lads discuss our new signing Filippo Terracciano. We have also published quite a few bonus articles lately, including the latest on the managerial pursuit and an opinion piece about the season. Are you interested in a paid subscription? Read all about it here.