Massimiliano Allegri's return to Milan
The new coach of Milan, Massimiliano Allegri (photo Getty Images)
"We need to be a single block, with a single direction. I try to put the players in a position to make us win, but the club comes first, it must be a single block, a support. Dedication to work must come first", said the new Rossoneri coach
Allegri's choice is both a message and an admission of guilt. Enough with the experiments, we go back to those who have always left the frills outside the door, preferring concreteness. Allegri 2 begins on the day Theo Hernandez signs for Al Hilal and this is already a signal, as well as a coincidence. Allegri asks for professionalism, passion, commitment, responsibility, work, a lot of work . All words that had little to do with the last Theo and it's a shame. Professionalism, commitment, passion and work are the words he pronounces most often in the hour spent at Casa Milan from where he left on January 13, 2014, sacked after the defeat against Sassuolo. Fifteen years ago when he entered Milanello for the first time, in the last great Milan of Berlusconi and Galliani, it was a kind of gamble, one of those plays that the president liked a lot. He won one championship, lost another, letting Conte's Juve overtake him, then managed to keep the ship afloat despite the flurry of transfers that summer (Ibra, Thiago Silva).
Today he returns with a little less hair, five more championships and above all a lot of experience : "I've changed a lot, but that's normal, it's the experiences that change you. I'm not saying that young people are more or less good than older people, it's a question of life experiences, not just in football. In a month I'll be 58, so compared to what the first Milan was, compared to when I started at Aglianese I'm completely different. I'm lucky because the four years at Milan taught me a lot and the other eight years at Juventus taught me other things, increasing my wealth of experience. But as I tell players, you never stop learning... but you have to want it, keeping in mind that maintenance doesn't exist. If you don't improve, it means you're getting worse."
At Milan, the era of normality is beginning. Next to Allegri there is a real sporting director like Igli Tare, there is no Ibra who last year was sitting next to Fonseca, but then did not defend him at the most beautiful moment. "We must be a single block, with a single direction. I try to put the players in a position to make us win, but the club comes first, it must be a single block, a support. Dedication to work must come first. We do not need revolutions, just work in an orderly manner". Allegri is clear in setting the objectives. He does not talk about the Scudetto : "It would help to make headlines, but it makes no sense". Concreteness, it was said: "We must start well and be ahead in March to play until the end. I only say that Milan must return to Europe, or rather to the Champions League". He winks at Vlahovic (“Wonderful boy”), compliments those who are already there (“Excellent squad”), focuses on captain Maignan (“one of the best goalkeepers in Europe, the club did a great job convincing him” and on Leao (“he is extraordinary, he will have a great season”).
For him, football is simple : “Ever since I collected stickers as a child, I learned that in Italy the goal difference is the thing that matters most. Almost always in Serie A the team that concedes the fewest goals wins, only Sarri's Juve was an exception . It's not a question of being short-tempered, but when you have the ball you have to try to score, when your opponent has it you have to try to steal it from him and stop him from scoring. You have to have fun with grit, that's my way of seeing things. The art of football is made by the players with their feats. When Cristiano Ronaldo scored that overhead kick goal, people remember that, not the action that brought him the ball”.
He was very clear about one thing, so much so that he repeated it several times: “The season starts on August 17th in the Italian Cup with a match that for us will already be do or die”. As if to remind everyone that with Bari they will have to get serious right away. “Because what counts is always the result. If you win you are a good guy, if you lose you are…”. He doesn’t need to finish the sentence. To hell with the eternal comparison between game-makers and results-makers. By now Max has gotten used to being criticized for his game. He knows that in the end only the result counts. And if so many clubs have sought him out there must be a reason. The time for experiments is over. It’s up to Mister Wolff to solve the problems in his own way.
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