Can I kick it? [Newsletter]

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Oct 07, 2024

Everything that could have gone wrong at Stadio Artemio Franchi on Sunday evening materialised. From two missed penalties to Theo getting sent off AFTER the full-time whistle, it was a shambles for Milan against Fiorentina. To top things off, Paulo Fonseca did the exact opposite of conveying tranquillity with his post-match comments as he revealed the hierarchies were not respected.

There is so much that can be said about Milan’s performance against La Viola, but above all there is great disappointment. They had the chance to make it four consecutive wins in the league and given how the season started, it was almost needed. It might not be the end of the world but if they want to clinch the second star, a different mindset is needed between now and the end of the campaign.

If the previous games had showcased unity and a willingness to work as a team, yesterday’s game showcased all of the negative sides. There was a lack of cohesion at the back (as against Bayer Leverkusen), technical errors in all areas of the pitch kept Milan from gaining any sort of momentum and on top of that, they missed their chances once again. Tammy Abraham has almost become synonymous with missing good opportunities at this point.

David De Gea did very well to save both penalties, we must admit, but the fact remains that you simply cannot afford to miss two penalties in one game. And if the designated penalty taker has to give up the opportunity to strike twice (!), then the players putting themselves ahead of the team better make sure to find the back of the net. That didn’t happen yesterday and it cost Milan dearly.

More so than anything, Fonseca's comments after the game were worrying. He was rather vague when asked about what went wrong, blaming it on ‘a lack of aggression’, but that was far from the worst part. Indeed, he admitted that Pulisic is the designated penalty taker and that the player shouldn’t have switched in the first place. ‘It will never happen again’, he concluded.

With the risk of exaggerating, that doesn’t sound like a team in perfect harmony to us. No one expected everything to be perfect at this point, don’t get us wrong, but it was certainly logical to expect some sort of progress. And to reference our previous newsletter ‘Growth or a missed opportunity?’, it unfortunately seems like the Leverkusen defeat was the latter in light of yesterday’s result.

Speaking of perfect harmony, the exact opposite describes Hernandez’s birthday evening. He caused the penalty, missed Milan’s first and then got himself red-carded after the final whistle. It was obviously very harsh that he got penalised for the foul on Dodo, but the fact that he couldn’t keep his cool after the game - as the captain - is simply not good enough. And now he could be out for two or three games.

Fiorentina-Milan Bulletin

➤ Fonseca spoke to the media after the game and labelled the penalty calls ‘a circus’ as ‘everything was a penalty’. He admitted that Milan lacked the aggression needed to win the game, and made it clear once and for all that Pulisic is the penalty taker. Gabbia was also very disappointed and stated that ‘we have to look each other in the face’.

➤ Our player ratings were not exactly kind to the Rossoneri as the likes of Fikayo Tomori and Theo Hernandez ended up at 4.5/10. Mike Maignan and Christian Pulisic were the only positives, both given a 7/10. Gazzetta dello Sport’s ratings were relatively aligned with ours, but the captain of the evening was criticised even more as he got a 4/10 by the pink newspaper.

➤ Pulisic wasn’t happy as he left the pitch in the 82nd minute, holding out his arms and asking Fonseca ‘Why, why?’. After having had two penalties taken away from him, the American found the back of the net with a fantastic finish and Daniele Longo described the penalty debacle as ‘a clear lack of respect’. Furthermore, what Abraham did is ‘absolutely unacceptable’.

➤ It was a disastrous birthday evening for Theo Hernandez, as highlighted by the ratings above, and he could now miss the next two or three games. He insulted the referee after the final whistle and precedent tells us that he will be suspended for at least two games. The situation will become clear once the Sporting Judge publishes the report, which is expected very soon.

➤ As a result of the poor performance last night, Fonseca’s future at the club has once again come into question. Today’s edition of Corriere della Sera states that Milan’s limitations were shown to the world, again we must add, and that a lot of work awaits the Portuguese manager during the break. Udinese and Club Brugge are up next, and he will have to do it without the captain.