AC Milan failed to bounce back from two consecutive losses in the league, facing Udinese in front of a big crowd at the San Siro. The away side managed to snatch a point, while the Rossoneri’s fourth place is now at risk.
For their manager, Gennaro Gattuso, a storm of criticism awaits. In addition to this, the pressure is certainly piling up, as his side managed to take only one point from their last three games. Considering the opponents were Inter, Sampdoria and Udinese, this is unacceptable.
Now, their spot in the top four is in serious doubt, as Lazio only are four points behind with two games in hand. In other words, given the form Inzaghi’s men are in, the Champions League spot could soon be long gone for the San Siro side.
After the fiasco last weekend against Sampdoria, many had hoped to see some improvement this evening. However, instead we got to see something similar, with Milan once again failing to deliver enough quality at the back and up front.
Gattuso switched things up with a 4-3-1-2 formation but that plan went out the window already in the first half as Paqueta came off injured. Castillejo was brought on to replace him, but we all know that the Spaniard isn’t a trequartista. Therefore, the formation change ended up being more of a problem for the Rossoneri players.
Furthermore, as the players failed to perform at the highest of their standards, Udinese grew in confidence as the game progressed, while Milan evidently struggled. The goal conceded, however, was a bit unfortunate for Gattuso’s men, as it came after a great chance for Piatek which was squandered.
On the other hand, Milan’s goal also came out of the blue, more or less. However, Cutrone and Piatek showed why they should continue to play together up front, linking up really well throughout the game and especially on the goal. Tonight, that wasn’t enough though, as strikers can only do so much without proper service.
All in all, two points dropped, which could turn out to be decisive at the end of the season. Next weekend a big clash against Juventus awaits, and after that the Rossoneri will take on Lazio at the San Siro, which will be crucial for both sides with regards to fourth place.
With Paqueta potentially missing the game against Juventus, Gattuso should switch back to the 4-3-3 formation, alternatively use a 4-4-2 formation with Piatek and Cutrone up front. However, when the confidence is this low, it’s hard to see Milan getting anything out of that clash anyway.
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