Summer 2014 Schedule
I think Pippo is proving to be a yesman, which is what Seedorf was not, and thats why he was banished and treated like shit.

I dont think its fair to judge their coaching skills based on results with Milan, because I dont think there's a coach in this world that could make the top 3 with this squad of nobodies, hasbeens and dontcares.
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It's far too early to judge Pippo right now, he's only been in charge a few weeks and a lot of that time has been spent getting players back into training. That said, he's shown some interesting ideas and it's how well the players can implement them that worries me because when it came down to it, Allegri wasn't able to get these players organised, Seedorf had to adapt to try and get something from these players and so far they seem to struggle with some basics under Pippo.

About the tactical game yesterday, I think Pippo's defensive work this past week showed a lot, as the players looked far better organised and knew roughly what their role was. Abate and DES were interesting, as Pippo chose to play with an extremely narrow back four, meaning Saponara and Muntari had some licence to press high and in these times Essien had the fullbacks covering either side of him. Actually it worked pretty well for the most part, although Niang and SES dropped too deep during the first half to follow their man, when in reality they should have pressed higher to stop us defending too deep. They did this second half and certainly I think it's fair to say for about 30 minutes in that half, we actually played pretty well in our work off the ball.

As for comparing Pippo to Seedorf, we're talking about two totally different situations. In Seedorf's case, he came during a time when we were in turmoil and change was needed. Usually, you do see an immediate reaction when this sort of change comes. He also had a fully fit team (that wasn't actually fit enough) to work with. Pippo's got to start completely from scratch, as players will be returning from breaks and fitness is going to be at it's lowest. Knowing the difficulty with had with fitness in recent years, it's not going to be something he can remedy quickly. Also bear in mind Seedorf had match fit important players like Rami, Taarabt, Montolivo, Honda and De Jong to rely on. Pippo's not had many of them and those he does aren clearly not match fit.

The other difficulty he faces is the mental damage done in the past year. The players look questionable in character and mental strength and it was especially evident yesterday where we looked extremely frail as soon as we conceded the first goal (the penalty save helped to get us back on track imo).

Pippo's still got to grow, but he should be given time as well to get his ideas into place, because he's taken on a challenge that is near impossible for the best coaches, never mind a rookie. I also think we need to take this tour with a massive pinch of salt, as it's obvious Pippo's using it to assess the players he has at his disposal and see who he can depend on.

As for players yesterday, I must say as well as the improvements I mentioned above, it was pleasing to see aggression in the second half, something we've not seen for ages!

However, we still have massive issues with quality and confidence. In terms of quality, our play simply didn't have it, on the ball we were atrocious and the attack didn't have enough to work with. The biggest problem stemmed in two areas. The first is we didn't have any quality distribution from the back. This is obviously something we've struggled with for a while. The second is our midfield was just terrible. Saponara may have been the best of the three, but isn't really convincing that he can take on the responsibility to develop our play in the team. The less said about Essien and Muntari the better really.

Obviously things will improve as we get De Jong and Montolivo back, but we're off being as competitive as we should be in midfield. Unfortunately, I don't see there being a quick remedy for this although if we can get a midfielder of quality to compliment Montolivo and De Jong, then we can be competitive, especially knowing we have quality like Cristante and Saponara off the bench.

Overall though, our midfield is just a problem area. Essien and Muntari just aren't doing enough to warrant being relied on and they're taking up space without giving anything. Poli at this point is backup to what should be the first choice backups (Cristante and Saponara). Our CF position is again a problem, with Pazzini not holding up the ball or dragging defenders out of position at all of late, while Balotelli for the quality is still moaning like a child and walking around without interest on the pitch. This is one of the biggest problems we have, as without a CF working for the team and offering some quality, we lack a key reference point in the team.

SES will take time to get back, but despite not showing his best in the USA, he is one I think Pippo should count on this season. Niang did pretty well with his discipline and touches, but he needs to grow. I think he's a backup this year (or ideally out on loan) though along with Menez and Honda, rather than starter material.

I'm concerned about RB (or LB if DES is RB) and CBs. Rami I think should improve, as he had a similar start when he started playing with us last season and grew into the side, while if we're to do better, Alex has to step up to play as he can and has done over recent years. However, in both cases I think we're also looking at two guys who are physically big and will take time to get match sharpness (until then they will look clumsy).

There's so many limitations to this group I'm pretty worried as to how much Pippo can get from them. However, I'm also hopeful he will at least get them playing to the levels we expect of them (unfortunately, we're also only maybe a top 5 team at the moment).
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(08-03-2014, 03:14 PM)Mystik Wrote: Niang definitely outperforming El Shaarawy at the moment. You might say that he's trying to do too much..but at least he's trying to do something! SES just plays the ball back to DeS.......everytime. Doesn't take on his man, doesn't try incisive passes. He basically offers nothing at the moment Facepalm At least Niang beats 1-2 guys and creates dangerous offensive situations for us

I agree, the purpose of an attacking RW is to create chances and be a danger in the opposing half, I don't give a crap if ELS defenders better, Niang has been far far far far better than him this entire preseason, and he's definitely been our best player by miles. His dribbling is becoming a joy to watch, he's taking on his opponents very easily and his crossing is getting better. His shooting needs work and he needs to have a more creative mindset when it comes to his passing but he's so young, I'd give him time. A loan move to Genoa wouldn't be too bad, he'd be playing in Seria A and I'm sure he'd be a starter if he continues like this. Then again, with the crappy team we have we might need him more than we think.
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We're playing against Chivas at 9:00 p.m. EST (03:00 CET). Has anyone heard anything about lineups? I know DeS is injured so he definitely won't be playing. Constant is about to be transferred so I doubt he'll be in the lineup either.
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willing to pay to have the owners of AC Milan killed violently... how much does it cost
NOT A HAPPY MILAN FANAngry
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CHIVAS (3-4-3): A. Rodriguez; Pereira, Salcido, Araujo; Sanchez Arce, Castro, G. Rodriguez; Bravo, De Nigris, Fierro
MILAN (4-3-3): Abbiati; Abate, Alex, Mexes, Albertazzi; Poli, Cristante, Muntari; Honda, Balotelli, Niang.
Seems like the kick off has been delayed. Milan are not happy about the state of the pitch.
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Line-up ACMilan's XI vs Chivas: Abbiati; Abate, Alex, Mexes, Albertazzi; Cristante, Poli, Muntari; Honda, Balotelli, Niang

#ACMilan's bench vs Chivas: Agazzi Gabriel Zaccardo Bonera Rami Zapata Essien Modic Saponara Pinato Mastour El Shaarawy

Both teams are wearing white kits..this is so dumb. The only difference is Chivas' has some red stripes.
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I guess I might be alone in watching this. Well, this'll be a one man party then! FORZA MILAN!! Smilie_schal6Smilie_schal6Smilie_schal6
Lol who's the guy doing the coin toss? Looks like a random fan they found in the stands.
Massive chance for Chivas after a minute. Hit the post though.
Almost 1-0 for Milan after 8 mins. Great work by Niang!
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I'm watching as well. Pitch is absolute crap though..and my feed isn't the best.
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NIANG! 1-0!
(08-07-2014, 02:30 AM)Mystik Wrote: I'm watching as well. Pitch is absolute crap though..and my feed isn't the best.

Yeah mine too. Not the best game so far, but at least we've scored!
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