Well that was a fun opening act for the new season. It wasn’t perfect (see Leão injury), they didn’t exert a ton of energy, and got the win. We got to see some of the new pieces even if we still don’t quite know what Max Allegri has in mind for his go-to formation and personnel.
Since this was just a VERY early round Coppa Italia match, we’re not going to get carried away with everything we saw. But there were a few things I think we can take away from this so let’s talk about that.
The game went about as most of us expected. The Allegri defensive-minded tactical approach was nowhere to be seen just like Max (he was serving a suspension from 2024), and what we saw was an aggressive high line and a lot of interchanging parts between, well, really all the players. With the high volume of corners, especially in the first 25 minutes, it felt like Gabbia and Pavlovic were the missing center forwards in the squad as they were up high and in the box a lot of the time.
The two wide players, Saelemaekers and Estupiñan, were really the only ones to stay put but both did a solid job staying wide and working well with whoever was over on their side trying to make something happen. Both players put in the work running but also did a great job creating space when needed, making runs into space, and working nice give-and-gos. I thought this was what really helped all the interchanging as Bari tried to stay compact but the width provided lanes for the Milan players to work and attack.
Each goal came from different runs of play and it’s nice to see Milan score a few different ways. On the first, Milan won back possession in the midfield, went down the left, Fofana and Pulisic had a nice give and go but Pulisic overcooked the cross. Tomori tracked it down and wisely fired in another cross to a still-scrambling-to-get-organized Bari defense and his cross found an unmarked Leão for a header.
The second goal came very soon after the halftime whistle, as Milan transitioned well and quickly and sprung a counter attack. Giménez did well to receive and lay off for Pulisic and continued his run (these are all great things and hopefully signs of progress in his game), Pulisic laid it back off, Giménez squared it back to him and Pulisic settled it, turned and fired in for the second goal. Both players looked in sync despite the limited amount of time together this preseason.
Other things I liked and noticed was despite the volume of shots (but they were better at least!), I thought Fofana was really good. Played more like a box-to-box or even an attacking midfielder at times. With Ricci and Jashari, he’s going to have to find ways on the pitch as I think he’s the odd man out when Milan is in a 4-3-3 (I think Modric, Ricci, and Jashari likely end up being the main guys there). He was much more dynamic than we saw last season. RLC also played well so maybe when Milan is in a 3-5-2 he can be useful…provided he stays healthy.
Modrić was, well, Modrić. Doesn’t look like he’s missing a step and should be a fun player to watch this season. A maestro in a league where a maestro is often needed to break down tactically astute opponents. Should be a blessing for Jashari, who himself looked comfortable in his calcio debut. I’ve mentioned he reminds me of Tonali, and I think he’s going to be that force in the midfield, but it also looks like he has the offensive tools like Tonali to be able to move closer to goal as he gets older. I think there’s a lot of potential there.
Not everything was peachy, as Leão took himself off the pitch just a few minutes after scoring. He got injured after leaping and trying to win a 50/50 ball. I thought it might’ve been a knock but it was confirmed that it was a muscle issue. So that’s not great, although the reporting I’ve seen this morning is framing this as somewhat precautionary. The fact that he stayed on the bench also gives me some hope that it was maybe a cramp more than anything else, although I’m mentally preparing for him to be out a few weeks. Prepare for worst, hope for the best…
Before we get to ratings, a few off the pitch happenings since the last Monday Milan Musings:
– CB Koni De Winter did indeed sign and completed the move from Genoa. I like the signing, a good like-for-like replacement for Thiaw and Milan made a little money on it to boot.
– RB Zachary Athekame signed as well. This deal was supposedly close for a couple of weeks but they did finally get it over the finish line. With Jiménez maybe frozen out of the squad, Milan needs a RB if Allegri wants to utilize the 4-3-3. Maybe he’s a solid player, hopefully he is! But we’ll have to wait and see what Milan has in the 20yr old.
– Leeds is apparently close to signing Okafor if the player signs off on the move…but this was before Leão’s injury. There’s a chance Milan hits the pause on this until they know for sure how long Leão will be out. If it does go through, the transfer fee will be around €15M-€20M.
Now, ratings.
Player Ratings
Goal Keeping
MAIGNAN 7.5 – Quiet night. As it should’ve been.
Goal Keeping Overall 7.5
Defense
TOMORI 8 – Looked good! Fighting for his place, clearly. Damn good cross he whipped in too.
GABBIA 7 – Kind of invisible but not in a bad way.
PAVLOVIC 7 – Aggressive getting forward and on corners. Maybe we’ll see Mexes-level of goals from him this season???
Overall Defense 7.5
Midfield
SAELEMAEKERS 7.5 – Oh man. Lisi is going to love this…I kind of liked what he did?…maybe? I know, I know, I’m shocked too. Don’t think he’ll play as much if the 4-3-3 is mostly used, but looked really good in the 3-5-2.
FOFANA 7.5 – Put in some time on that shot! Still took too many but they were at least mostly better quality shots.
RICCI 7 – Solid debut. Looked unfazed by it all. Going to be solid all season.
LOFTUS-CHEEK 7 – Was actually pretty good. Ran the channels well, won the ball back a few times, and used his size for a change. I’m not holding my breath for him but if he’s going to be out there I hope we get more of this.
ESTUPIÑAN 7 – Defense first, which was nice, but also had a lot of smart movement up and down the left. Looks like a solid player, let’s hope he is.
Midfield Overall 7
Forwards
PULISIC 8 – Kind of a sloppy 8? Could’ve been a 9.5 or a 10 if he didn’t waste so many chances. Still, looks hungry. Let’s hope the decision making and execution return to 2024-25 levels.
LEÃO 8 – Almost didn’t play long enough to rate him. But looked good for what we saw. I’m still skeptical this 2-winger up top thing will work in the 3-5-2 formation once the season rolls around, but the attack had some bite and credit to Leão for providing some of that.
Forwards Overall 8
Subs
GIMÉNEZ 7.5 – Looked good. Loved all the movement and the play with Pulisic was solid all around. He wasn’t what we were promised last season, maybe we start to see some of that potential this season.
JASHARI 6 – Got about 30 minutes and looked good. His movements all seem to be smart and intuitive.
MUSAH 6.5 – I don’t know if he stays but looked a little less lost out there.
MODRIĆ 6.5 – Going to be so fun to watch him. Excited.
OKAFOR 6 – Was fine. Milan might need to keep him with Leão’s injury. Hopefully a decision is made soon because his uncertainty last season surely affected his play (in a negative way).
Subs Overall 6.5
Coaching
LANDUCCI 7 – Who? Assistant Marco Landucci took the reins for a suspended Allegri and filled in admirably. The team was organized and seemed to understand the assignment. As mentioned in the editorial above, the team was dynamic and interchanged well with each other and did well to minimize opportunities for Bari. Yes, it was Bari, but the game was meaningful and it was nice to see the team take it seriously. Credit to Landucci, Allegri, and the whole coaching team.
Final Thoughts
A programming note: I’ll be working to get the season preview done and posted around Wednesday-Thursday of this week. Milan plays on Saturday and I’ll actually be traveling, so the matchday post might go up this Friday. I don’t know how helpful it’ll be since we might not know if Leão is available or what formation Allegri will use, but it is what it is.
Solid first showing of the season. Next game, the first game of the league season, is Saturday at 2:45pm EST/6:45pm GMT. Mark your calendars.
Forza Milan
gillis
