Ground zero [Newsletter]

May 28, 2026

😲 Collapse and clear-out

Woah! You know when they say that things can change in the blink of an eye? Milan’s reaction to the defeat against Cagliari was a great example of that. I didn’t take a blink of an eye for Gerry Cardinale to formally sack Giorgio Furlani, Igli Tare and Massimiliano Allegri, but nevertheless, their fate was decided as soon as the full-time whistle sent San Siro into an uproar.

Enough has been said about the massive collapse to end the season (two wins in the last eight games!), so there’s no point in going over it again. However, I will say that Allegri left us with no question marks as to whether he should remain or not. And that’s saying a lot about the final performance as he was actually rumoured to remain in the event of Champions League qualification.

Does that mean that a total clear-out was the correct decision? Who knows. But in the eyes of Cardinale, I think Allegri was seen as an ‘old-school solution’ to begin with and when even that didn’t work, he felt that some massive decisions needed to be made. I don’t disagree with him on that front, massive decisions were indeed needed, but it’s increasingly hard to separate right and wrong at Milan these days.

🎁 Shopping for… everything

Given the above, Milan are currently looking for a new CEO, a new sporting director and a new head coach. It is believed that Massimo Calvelli and Zlatan Ibrahimovic are spearheading this, with the head coach pursuit taking up most of the attention in the media. That’s only right, as the Rossoneri have made it known that they will go for a modern coach rather than any ‘nostalgia solution’.

Andoni Iraola had been named as the top candidate by various sources, but since it seems he’s heading elsewhere, the likes of Unai Emery, Oliver Glasner, Thiago Motta and Xavi could heat up. Just from the sheer amount of reports regarding him, you would assume that Iraola was indeed the priority. Bumps in the road were bound to appear though, especially when the job you’re offering is quite the undertaking.

And oh, Ralf Rangnick has supposedly been offered a role in the management (almost like 2020 all over again!). My point is that we shouldn’t get too carried away about the reports in the media at the moment. The Iraola ‘blow’ is a fantastic example of why we just need to wait for the official statements, even if the process of such important decisions deserves to be followed closely…

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📋 Milan Bulletin

Below, we have collected the most important Milan news from the last week, including our longer reads, match results and newspaper reports.

📰 Latest News

Some news has come out regarding the plans for Milan Futuro. Firstly, there will be a change in head coach with Massimo Oddo leaving to pursue an opportunity at a higher level. In addition, some players are expected to leave too and a core has been identified to build around. Jovan Kirovski will not only remain as the director of the project, but will be ‘rewarded’ for his work with a renewal.

As mentioned above, Andoni Iraola is the man that Milan wanted to take over as their new head coach. There were talks even before the sacking of Allegri, though they do not seem to have progressed well. Things are now stalled as per multiple sources, while the Basque-born manager waits for a call from a club with a bit more stability.

On the director front, Ralf Rangnick’s name has re-entered the frame seven years after the initial links with him. The German has apparently held positive discussions with Gerry Cardinale and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, but has made it clear - just like back in 2020 - that he would want full powers to take over. This has led to a state of reflection, with more talks planned.

Why is Zlatan Ibrahimovic the man permitted to reconstruct Milan’s sporting side? Well, a report from a reliable source suggested the fact that he is a business partner with Cardinale is one of the reasons he survived the cull. In other worrying news, those remaining in the hierarchy are apparently using an analytics consultancy firm to find a sporting director.

Mercato round-up: Milan could miss out on a Lazio star due to their corporate chaos, ironically to Bournemouth; Leao is ready to stand firm over his future despite Cardinale’s desire to sell; Camarda will return to base and calls have already arrived; the owner has declared one man unsellable; Modric’s future remains in doubt; and the captain could depart despite his recent renewal.

🔍 Longer Reads

Our longer reads from over the past week include an explanation of why Igli Tare is merely a convenient figure to sacrifice, a reconstruction of how Milan went from title contenders to casualties in the top four race, and an outlining of the self-declared core principles for the ‘new Milan’. There is also the tactical analysis from the Cagliari game that got Allegri sacked, and the five talking points.