08-10-2016, 09:36 AM
I think De Sciglio must take responsibility for his performances, as should all players. If he's to become the player we hope, I think he needs to try and take on responsibilities not just of himself, but also more in the team. That said, it's not just down to him that his performances have been the way they have in the past couple of years. Injuries and the situation at the club have been nothing short of toxic in his case, a young player trying to mature and grow. It's not just him, we've wasted numerous opportunities to grow young talents, DES, SES, Cristante (whose career has been wasted), Mauri (so far), Suso and also Niang have all struggled to try and grow in the club. Compound that with no experienced reference points in the squad to try and lean on and suddenly it becomes much harder. It's worth reading about how Pirlo (in his book) talks about the influence Maldini and Costacurta in the dressing room, or how those to talk about guys like Baresi and you immediately see how important this is.
However, I think on the flip side, the guy is still young at 23 (I'd say 24-25 is the best point of full maturity for most top players) and imo showed not just in the Euros and Coppa final, but also a number of matches before that, signs of recovery and confidence. I don't think this will stop, in fact seeing Montella's work so far in preseason, I feel confident that DES can actually grow under him now that a lot of the difficulties he had are starting to be put behind him.
His challenges mentally (which he's admitted to) have clearly played a part in his performances in recent years. The lack of confidence was clear to see, but I (and assume others) totally underestimated how big a factor it had become. With this in mind, the time it takes to recover is heavily impacted. However, on the flip side, if there's one thing to take it's that DES' professionalism was never actually questioned at any point and his "feeling guilt" for eating pizza shows that he's committed to his career, even if in this case it was an extreme reaction and counterproductive. Honestly, I look at the man and I think we have a good guy here, that should foremost be the most important characteristic when looking at players.
As for whether we're more patient or forgiving for players that are homegrown. In my case I openly admit that I am. Not that they get a free pass from me, but I've always advocated the value of homegrown players. They are the best representatives for creating an identity at the club and being a symbol of the club's values. DES has many qualities that can represent Milan, with his discipline, professionalism and "clean" character. Not just to those coming in, but you look at the number of times youth talents currently in the Milan set up talking about how they look up to DES, and it's pretty clear that this can represents more than just what he shows on matchdays.
This is why DES has never been "sellable" in my view, I think he's a valuable piece to rebuilding Milan and bringing it back to being Milan again. I'm confident that we'll see an improved DES this season. I said the same last summer and while my estimates were wrong in how long it would take for him to recover, I think we've seen good signs of recovery since then and so believe he's headed in the right direction. I want to give him another year, maybe two before I really question his value to the club.
However, I think on the flip side, the guy is still young at 23 (I'd say 24-25 is the best point of full maturity for most top players) and imo showed not just in the Euros and Coppa final, but also a number of matches before that, signs of recovery and confidence. I don't think this will stop, in fact seeing Montella's work so far in preseason, I feel confident that DES can actually grow under him now that a lot of the difficulties he had are starting to be put behind him.
His challenges mentally (which he's admitted to) have clearly played a part in his performances in recent years. The lack of confidence was clear to see, but I (and assume others) totally underestimated how big a factor it had become. With this in mind, the time it takes to recover is heavily impacted. However, on the flip side, if there's one thing to take it's that DES' professionalism was never actually questioned at any point and his "feeling guilt" for eating pizza shows that he's committed to his career, even if in this case it was an extreme reaction and counterproductive. Honestly, I look at the man and I think we have a good guy here, that should foremost be the most important characteristic when looking at players.
As for whether we're more patient or forgiving for players that are homegrown. In my case I openly admit that I am. Not that they get a free pass from me, but I've always advocated the value of homegrown players. They are the best representatives for creating an identity at the club and being a symbol of the club's values. DES has many qualities that can represent Milan, with his discipline, professionalism and "clean" character. Not just to those coming in, but you look at the number of times youth talents currently in the Milan set up talking about how they look up to DES, and it's pretty clear that this can represents more than just what he shows on matchdays.
This is why DES has never been "sellable" in my view, I think he's a valuable piece to rebuilding Milan and bringing it back to being Milan again. I'm confident that we'll see an improved DES this season. I said the same last summer and while my estimates were wrong in how long it would take for him to recover, I think we've seen good signs of recovery since then and so believe he's headed in the right direction. I want to give him another year, maybe two before I really question his value to the club.