What the f*** is going on at Milan?
New managers and players leaving with a side of unruly chaos. What is next for the Rossoneri?
Sérgio Conceição made a beeline for Davide Calabria. Milan had just scored two in the dying moments to beat Parma. Emotions were high, and given the Rossoneri's tumultuous season so far, they boiled over. What should have been a celebratory moment turned into something sour, with a new coach and the club captain needing to be separated in a heated argument.
Calabria has now left the club, although the reason wasn’t this spat. He would depart the club at the end of his contract in June regardless. He left earlier, though, leaving behind an 18-year stint from youth to the first team. He said an emotional farewell from his car window, tears rolling down his face. His time at the club he loved was over.
Fast forward a week from Parma and Milan were minutes away from a third consecutive derby win against Inter. If it wasn’t for a 92nd-minute Stefan de Vrij equaliser in the Madonnina, Conceição and Milan would have a massive and much-needed win at a time of frenzy.
I can’t keep up with Milan. One minute they’re sacking Paolo Maldini and appointing Zlatan Ibrahimovic in an advisory role and the next they’re winning the Supercoppa under a manager they’ve brought in halfway through the season. From there, they seem to be losing Francesco Camarda (on loan) and Alvaro Morata at the same time, despite only signing the latter six months ago. If it wasn’t for Zlatan cancelling Camarda’s loan to Monza, Milan would be left with Tammy Abraham as their only number nine, relying on him staying fit.
Just a week after rumours of the new manager’s job already being under threat, Milan have somewhat started to show signs of turning it around, adding to the rollercoaster ride they are on. After a terrible Champions League result against Dinamo Zagreb, they performed well against Inter and finished the transfer window strongly. To address their striker issues, they brought in 23-year-old Mexican forward Santiago Gimenez from Feyernoord. Gimenez had seven goals in 11 games in the Eredivisie. Alongside him, they added Joao Felix on loan to bolster their attacking options.
Kyle Walker joined Milan as Calabria exited, too. And although he had a solid debut in the Madonnina, a 34-year-old loanee is not exactly a sign of ambition from the suits leading the club. He will be a good addition, but if we’re looking at the project, he won’t take Milan to the next level they desperately need long-term. Fikayo Tomori rejected moves away from the club in a bid to fight for his place despite his poor form so far this season and the club will be hoping he continues his performances from the derby because defensively, Milan have been shocking all season. Riccardo Sottil joins on loan from Fiorentina and Warren Bondo from Monza, too, whereas Noah Okafor leaves for Naples and Ismaël Bennacer to Marseille.
Conceição is looking for more passion and more aggression from his side. At Milan, they’re expected to fight for the badge, which is something that has been missing. He’s come in and stamped his authority, sending a message by getting rid of Calabria and Morata. Not without smoke, though, as rumours of Morata, Theo Hernandez and Christian Pulisic being disgruntled with his methods and with the Spaniard leaving, it is an interesting situation. But the new manager is charismatic, he knows what he wants and has his ways. Milan have to back him in this to see the benefits.
All in all, Milan are all over the place this season. Steadying the ship is a necessity, especially for their project. Whatever that is. Sérgio Conceição has his work cut out, that’s if the board give him enough time to build. They sit in eighth place at the time of writing this, five points away from fourth place. With the Coppa Italia match against Roma, a play-off Champions League against Feyenoord and Empoli, Verona and Torino in their next three league games - the Rossoneri will be hoping to progress in all three competitions and build momentum towards the end of the season. But who knows what will happen because, as mentioned, a chaotic aura seems to be circling Milan and you can never know what to expect from them when matchday comes around. Will Conceição get the best out of Rafael Leao and Theo Hernandez? Will he help Milan find their feet and resuscitate their season? Let’s find out.
Catanzaro’s Federico Bonini and teammates celebrate his opener against Cesena with the fans. Catanzaro went on to win 4-2, sitting in 5th place and unbeaten in five.