Tired of Cassano, Napoli away after Barcelona away.. saw this coming. Missing Robinho, he connects with the team a lot better than Pato even though he can't finish.

I'm not laughing.



Seedorf needs a break till April. When fatigue hits the other teams and the tempo of the game substantially drops, that's when his fat bum can make a difference. Seriously, how much longer are we going to keep depending on this guy? He was a lazybones when he was in his early 30s, how can you expect anything from him nowadays? Retire!!!



You said. There were two key elements that made us fall apart tonight: movement and cohesion. Our players were simply walking for the whole freaking match. No pressing, no movement without the ball, no interchanges, nothing! They seemed as if they couldn't bother with the game. We didn't play as a unit. No one took the trouble of helping their team mates. The spaces left for Napoli in counterattacking were enormous. I just can't understand what our mentality for tonight's game was. I simply can't.

Great. We used to laugh of Carlettos explanations. Now this...really classy.

In fact Nesta could have been red carded, same goes for Pato and his push - which would have been yellow and then the dive - second yellow. Some other obvious dives by some players also got overlooked. And he puts emphasis on the referee and "luck" (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif)

I think my anti-Allegri signature needs a revisit. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sleep.gif)

Why are you fixated on Seedorf? He's a easy target, yes, age, lazy, bla bla bla. But in fact, he wasn't lazy at all today. And who'd play for you today, Emanuelson maybe? The outcome would be the same, if not worse. Screaming "retire" is really not necessary; not under the circumstances we are in. Seedorf needs to be used rationally. Is it his fault that the team is depleted with injuries and lack of creativity? Is it his fault Allegri believes he can play twice a week all 90 minutes? What good would his retirement bring us at this point? Another missing component? Another player gone with no plan to replace him just like Pirlo? I'd understand your frustration if our roster would be without injuries and if Seedorf was the one complaining about not being played, but it isn't the case.

It's pretty much obvious that Seedorf didn't cost us this match. There are at least 4 other reasons that would definitively be more plausible.

This guy is such a hard case. He's harder then Ancelotti. He makes a great step forward, then two steps back in the wrong direction.

I never said Seedorf cost us the match, but his role is the most important in our midfield. He has to create! He must not lose the ball, he most not make cheap backward passes, but he must be at the heart of our play the entire team. Sort of like Pirlo always used to be in his rossonero days. But the guy is entirely depleted. He's 35 for f*ck's sake! Just like Gattuso, just like Ambrosini and just like Inzaghi, he cannot play at high levels anymore. Age is an irrevocable thing. Everyone would like to play till they're 50, but it's not possible. There are plenty of players out there who can do better than Seedorf, namely Montolivo, Ganso, Eriksen and even Aquilani. For the next game, I want Aquilani as LCM and El Shaarawy as AM. No more jogging around like a bunch of puppets.

Totally agreed. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sleep.gif) No one's doubting Seedorf's talents, and his effectiveness when holding up the ball, but when it comes to creating and attacking, he is the biggest liability in the team. And it will keep on showing in the big matches, the matches that matter. We really should not have renewed with him, shook hands and moved forward. The way he was falling down and losing the ball, instead of playing up and creating (which he used to do quite well), I have no words for it.

There is no chance that a midfield #10 of his type can play on till the wrong side of 30. Few, if any do at this level.

In a sense, incurable. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif) You learn from your mistakes, not make them again and again and expect a different result. On paper, our team was still better than Napoli's (player-for-player, that is). The way we were playing was plain stupid. Even if the squad arrived in the stadium in an ambulance, these are not the tactics and thinking that are to be applied.

It almost looked like Napoli were champions, and Milan just got promoted from Serie B. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif) It was a show of brute strength, instead of intelligent tactics. Napoli's coach had a good plan, his team stuck to it, and it paid them plenty well. While we gave the other sides in the league an open manual on how to unlock our team.

Unless the coach evolves and plans each game on its merits. Which doesn't seem to be case with Mr. Stubborn.

But how do tactics effect this game? I don't think it was allegri's fault. I just don't think we are good enough.


We need depth in our squad and currently due to injuries we just don't have any. The senators can't play back to back games 90 minutes each.

But they did. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/unsure.gif) If you have injuries to key players, and both your experienced creators are not good enough anymore for a match-up of this sorts (I'm looking at you Seedorf and Cassano), then you sit back, relax, and ask the opposing team to come at you. Not become a cowboy and try to out-muscle your way to victory.

Allegri tried exactly the opposite of what was required and not only made a fool of himself and his team, but like I said, give the other teams in the league the book on how to unlock us. We gain possession, attack, run out of ideas in Napoli's half and they hit us on the counter - just like Cesena pulled a number on us last year. This game was exactly the same. Sure the players played a level or two below their capacity, but the coach looked like he did not learn from his past mistakes too. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif) And well, the game plan that our coach went in with also had an effect on our defense (more pressure on them), and they gave away three goals.

18th place in the league it is, but no reason to ring the alarm bells just yet. Allegri is famous for his slow starts!

It would be very embarracing if we had sat back and let napoli run the show. I don't think the players would accept that from Allegri. With barca its a different story but with Napoli we are expected to attack, regardless of whose on the pitch.

+1000

Nocerino, considering no one was moving around him did a great job IMO. He made more passes forward then seedorf, won balls, even showed a bit of skill out there. The team as a whole sucked, we can all agree but he had alot of pressure with abate going to the corner flag every time he got the ball and slowly jog back, Nocerino played the game as a RB technically and was our best mid IMO. I refuse to believe that he still needs to prove himself to the Milan faithful that he is above Rino.

Also outside of maybe swapping Aquilani with seedorf (which only I seemed to think plausible) or start antonini over bonnera (which didn't work against Lazio), how different could your starting XI been with all the injuries?


Really? I'd have to read the game thread but i'm pretty sure most members (including you IIRC) agreed no changes were absolutely obviously needed after the break. El Shaarawy came in on the 60th i think. So i guess you can argue that allegri is a colossal moron for not subbing him at...the 50th?, 55th? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)


He may not have cost us the match but what did he do? You came out calling out Aquilani who scored a goal, got in position for another and would come back to retrieve the ball very deep to relaunch the attack. You said he disappeared for 20 minutes IIRC. I believe that to be a false equivalency. Allegri purposely placed a CB at LB so that seedorf's only aim would be to create. He didn't want his LCM to be stuck covering like Aquilani did against Lazio. This is, as X-off said, where Allegri places his "creators". I saw seedorf, lose balls (most players struggled with control as well though), slow our counters down, run backwards in dangerous positions, play countless back passes.


+ all the cookies (IMG:style_emoticons/default/tongue.gif)

They did run the show, eventually. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif) Or should I say stole it. Losing after conceding 3 goals is bad enough, let one player score all three is embarrassing, man. And when I say sit back and let Napoli dictate terms, I do not mean playing scared. Just that let you opponents play their cards - and you play the game at your tempo.

See what they have to offer, and then hit them. But hey, at least one team did that and laughed all the way!