Tough game at San Paolo. really tough! I hope Max has learned his lessons from last night's game.. in other words


TIME TO GIVE ZEE, RINO AND DINHO SOME REST!!

START KPB, MATHIEU AND BINHO INSTEAD.




































Please!

As much as I would like to the the changes you mentioned - I just don't see Allegri making all those changes at once.

(if any at all...)

I think Rino is a slightly bigger problem (or whatever we call it) than Dinho while Seedorf is the biggest [...] of em all.

So KPB instead of Seedorf would be good for a start. I can live with Rino and Dinho playing the next game as well.

3-5-2. Let's not push the envelope anymore...tear that mofo up.



------Silva/Sok---Nesta---Bonera/Sok---------
Abate-----------------------------------------Luca
------------Pirlo--------Flam-----------------------
-------------------------R80/Robinho/KPB--------
------------Ibra-----------Pato--------------------

glad to see im not the only one growing more and more frustrated with seedorf, last night was shocking the wall, the missed chance and just the general negative movement

it will be difficult in the San Paolo but its an obligatory 3 points so hoping prince gets the nod and flamini also, not sure whether Pirlo should be given a rest or not

This please.

I wish we tried this midfield out against Real Madrid: (maybe switch Flamini/Prince, dunno what's best)



Napoli are a strong side also, so maybe this is an idea for this match also.
(I am going to guess Abbiati won't be back, while Thiago Silva will be hopefully.)

That's basically a 4-4-2. Even though Boateng could play as a side MF, I don't believe Flamini is capable of. I think Flamini should always play alongside Pirlo. Putting Robinho in there is also necessary, otherwise our attacking strength would be rather weak.

I personally would like to see this



Against Real, I was seeing Dinho practically on the center circle, and then Pato and Ibra far ahead and both on the wings. Which was totally stupid. Even worse it was Pato who was starting from the right.

Dinho is still needed behind the strikers, either that or no service. Getting the ball to him quickly is the most important thing, that's where the importance of that midfield come in.

If we play Robinho then it will have to be a 4-3-3, even if you're drawing it differently in the sketches it will still end up a 4-3-3 on the pitch.

Against Real the entire attack was cr@p, but that has to fall on the midfield's shoulders, which was so slow and static that they couldn't get past the halfway line because they kept losing it. Then you had Pato and Dinho who I can count the number of times both got a touch on 2 hands and when they did touch it they made a mess of it.

The one person I really don't want to see anywhere near the pitch at this point is Seedorf. We've all said in the past that he jogs around because he's uninterested etc, and that really was the case in the past, but now I just think he just can't keep up anymore, simple as that. We've seen him in 4 consecutive games now both in Serie A and the CL where he just completely fades out by the 30th minute and we're practically playing with a man down in the midfield

Last match we score goals it was two times perfect service from Zlatan to Pato. Also players like Prince and Flamini can cross, and without Ronaldinho as AMC it will be Pirlo with deep balls forward. I don't wanna say we should play 4-4-2 most of the times, but against really tough sides like Real and Inter we really need more defense power, more pace, more balance, more midfield. Napoli are a strong side too, so I like my line-up for that also. If we lack an attacker, we can bring in an 'inho.

Stop insisting on Dinho, han. He can perform against slow sides like Lecce, Parma and Chievo, where no-one double-marks him and he's allowed to roam freely. But against tough sides which pressure for the whole 90 minutes, Dinho is practically useless. And I'm not just talking about Madrid or Inter, but also teams like Napoli, Roma, Palermo, Juventus etc. He'll never succeed in expressing his game against strong opponents, because he's not capable of enduring fast-paced, muscular games. Watching him play against Madrid last night was like a bad joke. Forget Seedorf, Dinho was by far the worst player on the field. He got ridiculed by Real's midfielders.

I know you'll say "When we play bad, you always blame Dinho", but could it be that we play bad mostly because of Dinho? He wasn't the only culprit yesterday, don't get me wrong, but Allegri should realize that Dinho will always be null against tough sides. Always.

Personally I believe that a 4-4-2 requires certain types of players in order to work. And I believe we just don't have that.

Having Flamini and Boateng playing slightly behind Pirlo will give us defensive stability, as well as speed and the ability to transition the ball faster to the front 3.

As for Zlatan making assists, it's not like it's going to happen every game, especially like the second goal where it was very opportunistic. Plus I want to se Zlatan closer to goal. Not trying to play in Pato

Dinho has been playing well these past few games in the hole, he's working hard, helping out the midfield when needed and creating chances in attack by bringing in the two strikers into the game. Yes he had a bad night against Real, but so did our other attackers and there was a good reason behind that.

X-Off has Robinho playing but still where is he going to be playing? He can't play behind the strikers, he likes the wings, which against would force us into the dreaded 4-3-3, where either one of Pato or Robinho will have to be wasted on that right side, since neither are particularly comfortable playing there

Dinho was barely in the game, that goes for all 3 of our attackers. And he played worse then Seedorf?

You want Robinho on the field, so we'll have to play that wide 4-3-3 again, which does not work for us. Robihno can't play behind the 2 strikers either so unless Allegri moves Pirlo a lot up the pitch then that tactic won't work, and I can't see him doing that

Agreed.

It has been getting more than obvious: Ronaldinho preforms awesome against weak sides, and preforms awful (out marked) against strong sides.

When we play Chievo, Lecce, Catania, whatever, I am all for playing Ronaldinho. Against Inter or so, no thank you.

Are you Allegri's clone or something? Why do you have to be so narrow-minded? Playing Robinho-Ibra-Pato doesn't translate in the two Brazilians playing out wide. In fact, I want Pato to be our CF from now on, and Ibra can be the tower/assist man. Take a look at the line-up I posted above. Robinho will be playing mostly on the left, but not as a winger. More like a tracked-back SS. When it comes to attacking, we can use all the strength of Robinho-Pato-Ibra-Boateng, and when defending we're still going to be covered with three capable midfielders. Just because we're playing with three forwards and three midfielders doesn't mean two will have to play wide blah blah blah. It's all about movement. As long as the team moves and interchanges positions for the whole 90 minutes, the kind of formation we're utilizing is the last thing to worry about.

It's not narrow minded. You can talk all you want but I know how we'll see that being translated on the pitch. ie a 4-3-3. Which is my main problem. You can draw a million sketches but ultimutley how we shape up on the pitch is what matters and if you're going to play with Ribinho, Ibra and Pato then I'm 100% sure that we'll be seeing a 4-3-3 on the pitch.

And imo the only way I'd like to see that happen if we play like this

I know that, han. I'm not saying that Allegri will do the same thing I'm talking about, even if he fields the same players I want to. That's why I can't stand the guy. He's just too static, not willing to make changes or bring in ideas. He has no motivation whatsoever, and plays us like some mid-table team. He's no different from Leo, really.

And that is my point exactly. But I'm more worried about what we'll see on the pitch then how I want to see us playing

Anyway, if it is Robinho, Ibra and Pato against Napoli, I'm at least hoping to see something along the lines of what I posted, we can't afford to have that big gap between midfield and attack.

Still believe that playing Dinho in the hole is currently our best option until we bring in a real AM.

Our biggest problem against Real was that we looked like we were playing with 8 players. The ball got as far as the midfield 3 and was lost again. I'm not making excuses for anyone, because I thought that Dinho, Pato and Ibra all managed to turn it into cr@p when they did actually get a touch on the ball, Dinho with the bad passing, Pato with the bad runs and Zlatan was just invisible most games, I think I can count the number of times on one hand the ammount of times the camera focused on him.

Having said that, all of the issues we were having stemmed from the static midfield. Rino was chasing shadows, Seedorf looked like he was playing on another planet and Pirlo was left at it all alone.

I think we can all agree on that. Our biggest problem is the midfield. And hell, not because we don't have the players, but because of the choices of coach. So, in the end, it all falls on the coach. Allegri is just a bad loser.

A Flamini-Pirlo-Boateng midfield at the moment really is the best solution. But it also highlights how Milan's midfield has been neglected for years. IMO with Milan happened exactly the same what happened to many teams: Milan had 2 major concepts in the past decade, one with the Gullit-Rijkaard generation one with the Pirlo-Gattuso. Those concepts were small revolutions. Now, like almost always, time became our enemy and a once avantgarde midfield transformed into a museum.

But you know what Milan misses? They miss some rossoneri heart. They miss a born Milanist, someone who grew up watching Albertini, Ambrosini, Pirlo,... We really need some italian blood.

Generally, I agree. But I think you're going to far. Milan really does not have the proper players. Both Flamini and Boateng are way overrated here IMO, and that's because we're used to watch Seedorf and Rino bleed like hell after 60 minutes of running - and from that point of few, Boateng and Flamini seem fast and fresh like a 24 year old Henry in midfield. While actually, IMO Milan misses a classic AM the most.

I agree that we need a proper AM more than anything else, but I don't agree with you that Boateng and Flamini are overrated. Over whom? Flamini is not a top class midfielder, I've been the first to criticize him when needed, but at least he's better than Gattuso, whilst Boateng has shown he should always be a starter, especially over someone mediocre like Seedorf. In the absence of a proper AM, thus, we can opt between Robinho and Ronaldinho. Whilst I think Ronaldinho should be starter against small teams, Robinho should be our first choice in the Champions League and against the big Italian sides. Only this way we'll have a chance of winning something this season.

I agree that we need a classic AM, but the problem with Central Midfield cannot just be pushed aside and blamed on an AM.

Seedorf and Rino are done for and pretty soon Ambro will join that list. Our biggest problems imo lie in the FB and CM areas. We have 2 hungry young players who have quality despite what you wish to think about them who are on the bench, while Seedorf and Rino keep playing every 3 days, when in reality they can barely sustain a 100% performance for longer then 30 minutes per week

Maybe I didn't express myself properly. Maybe not overrated, but Flamini and Boateng are barely tested and I see no reason why I should belive in them so much.

But why isn't a player like Flamini tested? He's been a Milan player for 3 years now, he came off a great season with Arsenal, but never really been given a decent chance aside from playing at RB under Carlo for a couple of months. This is because all of our coaches did not want to make the necassary changes, they didn't/don't want to relinquish the hold the old gaurd has on this team. At this rate we're never going to move forward.

Imo Flamini is a top quality player, his biggest problem is his irrartionality, he comes from a league where it's ok to go in all guns blazing, tackling all over the place, while in Serie A you'll get called back/carded a lot for doing that. But why has he never shaken this out of his game? Because he's never had enough time to play a good chunk of matches to fully adapt to the way things are done in Italy as opposed to the way they're done in the EPL. Same thing goes for Boateng, we've seen him flying into challenges and get carded pretty easily. Imo that is something that can only be beaten oput of them by playing regularly.

Rino, Seedorf and Ambro are our past, we need to make changes or this team will never move forward, we're already stuck, thinking that the team that was already on its last breath in 2007 that won the CL thanks to Kaka can do that again for us now in 2010. Just ridiculous.

Should we keep believing in Seedorf and Gattuso then?

How can Flamini get better if he doesn't get to play regularly,I don't understand.

Look, I can buy the story that Ancelotti got used to his pals Ambro, Rino and Seedorf. I can even buy the story that Leo must have been under some Carletto impression. But three coaches Milan had in 3 years didn't select this guy. And you ask me why I don't trust him?

I just can't come to the conclusion that you and me see Flamini better then those three guys. And I can't call them stupid, because they just aren't.

Anyway - IMO Flamini is not a player Milan should regard as a starter under normal conditions. Now, it would be logicall to play him, but as soon as we will be able to bring in someone new, he should be replaced. As I said, I belive that the fact that 3 coaches put him aside must mean something more then just an undisciplined and untested potential.

...that's a fair point.

But still, Flamini can't be that awful. At the least, we need to bring in rotations to our midfield.

Fillipo, can you please offer a response to this question?

You say you don't trust them because they aren't tested. Well then doesn't that logically beg the question: Why not test them to see if we can trust them? You've seen the results when we've played our "tested" players.

And this term "Milan quality" really needs to be dissected a little bit. How can you be making claims that Flamini is not "Milan quality" when you admit that our coaches haven't given him a chance? Not too long ago, Flamini was "Arsenal quality" and that Arsenal side in which he played an important role in romped all over our "Milan quality" in the San Siro under the Carlo the great, no less.

The "milan quality" you want would involve breaking the bank for pastore and hamsik. We're not going to do that. And we need not look any further than the RESULTS of the coaches whose keen eye for talent you site in your rationale as to why Flamini isn't worth the fuss. Its the same bunch that overplayed Emerson and Brocchi, failed the talents of Gourcuff and Hunter, and have overseen our team during a 3 year period of relative mediocrity. Obviously for all their trusty talent-appraising abilities, they certainly have not always been right. They are not above criticism.

Some of us in the forum have been calling it as its happened over the years, and what's happening now with Seedorf and Rino is no different from previous instances of mismanagement.

I'll give you my response; allegri likes our tested players because they've touched the.....



GOLDEN ONE!

Like vnata said, those 3 coaches have their reasons for not playing Flamini and imo the only one that can be slightly excused is Leo because Ambro was great last season, but only for part of it, why? because he was playing every 3 days and again he's not 23, so obviously he got burned out quickly. Carlo had his fixed 5 in midfield and never strayed from it no matter what, he let Gourcuff rot, he let Flamini rot in favour of playing a disinterested Seedorf and Rino and Ambo every week. Leo imo was too afraid to move away from his regular 11, that's why we suffered so much when players got injured and Leo had to make changes and Allegri is just the same, he's either too afraid or too stubborn. I think he's partly both, he's afraid of what will happen if he turns his back on the old guard that has such a big influence on this team.

Imo you don't want to see Flamini and Boateng playing and can't accept that they're quality player because you know that them getting a strong hold in this team would mean the end of our beloved old gaurd. And I can't ever agree that Seedorf and Rino are now better then Flamini and Boateng. 5Maybe if they were 5 years younger then I would say the other 2 don't hold a candle to them but that is not the case, they're barely players anymore, Seedorf has been shocking these past few weeks. He just completely faids out of games before we even hit the HT break, how is that the better choice then playing someone like Boateng?


Great, great post!!

Oh boy, you're in great form, vnata! Awesome post once again, and love the shoutout to 'Carlo teh Great'.

And frankly though there is no such thing as Milan quality. It existed a few years back, when we could stand hand to head with other big clubs and matched them blow for blow (if not in spending prowess, then on the pitch). Now we can't even gather steam, let alone run out of it. And the reason for that is a disjointed team. Remember what I said a few months back, that B&G just plastered the squad by bringing in Ibra and Robino. The underlying problems and cracks are still there.

And they will, unless we get adequate replacements next season or two. They missed a trick by missing out on VdV, Hernanes, and Krasic. Frankly I'd have taken any of those three as opposed to Robinho (good player I know, but I've got a feeling he may under deliver). Robin is cover for our attackers, not the answer to our problems: the aging midfield and the static right flank.

"i am experiencing a beautiful moment right now. There is great serenity here. I am really enjoying my posting. I have to thank my forum-mates. Hopefully I can keep it up. I want to prove my class, and show that this form is not just temporary"

ok maybe that was lame.

Yeah, sort of like the Oscar acceptance speech at the Academy Awards, LOL!

I was going for one of those sort of cheesy Kaka-like interview soundbites.

Gee, I don't understand this...did anyone read my post? I intentionally let out the phrase "Milan quality" because I knew the moment I use it someone will jump on me, but the same happens. Sorry to spoil your theory, but look again I haven't used it.

I said I don't think Flamini is good enough to be a regular Milan player. I don't care how well he was playing years ago, I don't think he would be a regular in Arsenla as well.

And why do you push me to answer a question I've already answered to? Should we keep believing in Seedorf and Gattuso then? No, no, no, no, no, no and no. Enough? Once more: we should now give a chance to Boateng and Flamini, but as I don't think they'll shine and convince us we have a permanent substitution for our former star players, we will be forced to bring in new blood.

No we cannot keep faith...but what are our options. We talk of Merkel and Strasser like we've seen them play. The people who make the teams probably see them play every day in training. I think the day Strasser and Merkel outperform Rino and Seedorf in training they'll surely see a start. That the day has not come is the common-sense option. That Rino and Seedorf are still playing just coz they somehow become best friends with every coach who comes in...is another plausible option. But I'll use Occam's razor.

In a 21st century war, if on the battlefield the only replacement for your old six shooter is a battle club you're better off with the six shooters. Doesn't matter...the enemy's guns will still shoot you down...

Damn ...I'm cynical today!

Okay, well excuse me for being overly presumptuous? When you claim that they should not be starters for Milan, just because this time you didn't use the words "milan quality" (words you have written with regards to Flamini in the past), it's still quite clear what you mean.



Nobody is saying they're the new Albertini and Rijkaard. There is a tangible amount of excitement though at the improvement they will provide over Rino and Seedorf (in the time to follow). Yet you would rather criticize them for not being what Seedorf and Rino were 5 years ago without even seeing them given a run in the team? Before you've even given Boateng and Flamini a fair chance you're ready to write them off, like Gourcuff was by us not long ago, without a fair chance. For you to say that about them when they haven't been given a proper chance is completely and utterly unfounded.



Change our playing style to suit our personnel! we don't need the new seedorf and Gattuso. We need a tactician to make the best of the personnel we have. We still have the talent in our roster to form a product on the pitch that is Scudetto and CL Semi worthy! It will mean changing our identity, being pragmatic, and utilizing the qualities we do have. In certain tactical schemes, we don't need Seedorf and Rino on the field at all, yet still find success. Hard for some romantics to internalize, but still true.

It has that ring to it, agreed. Or should I say, cheese to it. LOL!

Not as easy as that I think. Your first sentence. I'm sure it's the easiest thing in the world to set our team out in a 4-5-1 and lump in long balls to Ibra and eventually we'd win. But then we'd crib about hhow much we suck. And the management will give him hell.

Allegri has one of the toughest directives possible for any manager. Win while playing beautiful. It's what got mourinho fired at Chelsea as you know.

Being pragmatic? They wouldn't have hired Allegri if they wanted a functional Milan side. Our big boss wants fantasy.


And to get fantasy you're needing to have every player in the XI playing in their best position. Like at Barca.

So our formation must for :

DEFENCE:

Abbiati: Not have too many high balls coming into the box.
Nesta: No forwards allowed to run at him at pace
Silva: Enough cover, so he can bomb forward and distribute
Luca Antonini: Freedom to go forward, while not being challenged to defend from a positional perspective
Zambrotta: His lack of pace mustn't be exploited, team must make room for him to get into shooting positions

MID:

Rino: Not expected to run forward too much. And must always have a short passing option available.
Pirlo: Can cut space, but musn't be pushed back too much to defend. Needs to have the whole team making intelligent runs.
Seedorf: Cannot be expected to play as pure box-to-box, must be allowed to play in an more advanced creative mid position...setting the tempo of the attack in the opponent's half.
Ronaldinho: Ball played to feet, plenty of passing options, strikers moving defenders out of position, and shouldn't be expected to track back and pressure.
Robinho: Pretty much the same as above.
KPB: Will leave gaps, and his positioning is suspect. Must be given freedom to join in attack.
Flamini: Must be given enough outlets to spend his energy, because he brings not a lot else. Our only true utility player.
Abate: Cannot defend, Cannot dribble, Can run, can cross a bit, can pressure a bit. 4-5-1 formation only??

FORWARDS:

Pato: Not a complete forward. Good pace, good dribble, good finishing. Bad decision making. Needs a direct path to goal.
Ibra: Complete forward. Can play with back to goal, with ball to feet. But needs to be fed all the time and given passing and shooting options. Can't really pressure hard. Not that kind of energy level.
Pippo: Keep serving it to him in and just around the box and have enough bodies in there to keep the defenders occupied so as let him sneak in. He's an assassin not a soldier.

****************

K. This will do for a start. Now sit around and try making a formation that will suit all these players to a T. A single stable formation that will also ensure player inclusions and that everyone gets adequate playing time. The new Berlusconi boys will also have to get enough time to play. They must also look good when doing so.

Think hard about it.

You know what I think?

No... we don't have the personnel to give the results that are expected of us. It's not changing the tactics to suit the personnel. We can't. The players will have to change to suit the tactics...and that is a big problem. Especially with the veteran squad. That thing about old dogs and new tricks.

Massimiliano Allegri will wield the axe after Tuesday's 2-0 defeat to Real Madrid in the Champions League.

Thursday 21 October, 2010
Milan set for revolution

La Gazzetta dello Sport understands Allegri feels that the attacking formation Milan have recently used is no longer sustainable, especially at the highest level.

No one is untouchable as far as Allegri is concerned, as he now seeks to line up a more balanced starting XI.

This appears to bring an end to seeing Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Alexandre Pato, Ronaldinho and Clarence Seedorf all playing together from the start.

Il Corriere della Sera believes Seedorf or Ronaldinho are at risk of spending more time on the bench because of their lack of dynamism.

Mathieu Flamini and Kevin-Prince Boateng are being readied for this weekend's clash with Napoli precisely because of their stamina and running ability.

It remains to be seen how Milan patron Silvio Berlusconi digests Allegri's plans to tone down the team in terms of attack.

Berlusconi has repeatedly expressed his belief that all of Milan's attacking players can be on the pitch at the same time.

Source: Football Italia

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I may be one of the few who still believe Allegri has something more than what most of you currently see. If this piece of news turns out to be true, then you may be proved wrong with you early conclusions about this guy. I believe all this while, he's been pressured to play all the stars together. However, this left the team severely handicapped as proved in Madrid. So after the beating we took in Madrid, I think he will finally create a balanced team that will compete far in both competitions. As most of us have noted, Flamini and Boateng are the ones who should be regulars; while Gattuso and Seedorf would make great subs.

He's still seemingly ignoring The Rino issue, Rino is not able to play for longer then 60 minutes at a good level. That's another big issue.

As for the attack. If he's going to drop Dinho he still can't keep Seedorf in there, imo he's our biggest problem. Robinho needs to play, and not Seedorf in the hole behind the strikers. That would be even worse

This is our best formation. The usage of the two young speedy players free up both Pirlo and Ronaldinho. Sure, Dinho played poorly but to call him the worst player is a stretch of bias. Seedorf was clearly the reason we failed in that game. Allowed a goal and failed to score a sitter as well as giving the appearance of playing with a piano on his back. Taking him and Rino out for Prince and Flamini drastically improves our speed as well as gives us an increase in skill IMO. No excuse not to line up with this formation.

Agreed Dracoris

Also if Allegri wants to explore an option without Seedorf and Dinho, I would really like to see this. Pirlo will get free reign in midfield, while Robinho can drift back in his favourite position while Pato and Ibra can drift closer to goal, with Ibra acting as the target an Pato can play off of.

I don't want to see Pato stuck on that wing though

THIS.

+1 to Han and Dracoris. I'll take Dracoris' to start with, but would like to see Han's in the longer term.

Sparrow, we know Berlusconi mouths off about fantasy football blah blah. But we should start winning consistently before we can even think about playing champagne football, no? And by no stretch of the imagination are we going to win consistently with Zee as a starter. Let's no longer refer to Seedorf as a "star", as he hasn't been one by any stretch of the imagination for most of the last 3-4 years. He needs to become "super sub", and nothing more. Seedorf's star is fading, and KPB is a star in the making.

I've been thinking, how can someone who's won 2 consecutive Serie A manager of the season titles (by the votes of his fellow league coaches, mind you) be so clueless about something so obvious. do we - MF members - really understand football better than the guy? that's a question we all got to ask ourselves IMO. maybe he's been taking orders from above as to how and who to play? good thing is, we'll know that as soon as October 25. after the Madrid debacle there simply is no reason why he should continue using the same players and not make any radical and permanent changes in the lineup, unless he really is clueless.

But then again, there's his substitutions which rarely make much sense. how can you be a good coach, but make useless and even disruptive substitutions? what do you think about this?

Well when taking into consideration the complexion of the squad when Allegri took over, I can see why it would be very difficult for him to make wholesale changes to the team immediately. Before any new coach taking the helm of a team can implement a his views — especially when it is a relatively young coach who doesn't command the immediate respect of the players (regardless of the players' reputations) like a Mourinho, SAF, and Hiddink would — needs the whole-hearted support of the dressing room. And at Milan, that means he needs the support of the dressing room pillars: two of which are Seedorf and Rino. If Allegri came in immediately and relegated Seedorf and Rino to the bench from the start (players who command respect for their past achievements regardless of their current form), it would have created cracks in the dressing room identity before he knew it — especially with all the new players we had — and possibly undermined any of his efforts. Those guys, despite being past their primes, after all these years have integrated themselves into the identity of who we are as a team.

Therefore, one can sort of see why it was necessary for Allegri to defer to the old guard at first. However, once optimal results are not being attained however — which is what we are seeing slowly but surely — the mediocre results would justify the changes. It is here, at this point, where Allegri would be well within his right in changing the complexion of the team in favor of a winning formula. If he got that formula correct, and the team started winning with the likes of Seedorf and Rino on the bench, then should they let their egos out of check, they'd run the risk of looking selfish and further diminish their good graces.

When you look at the example of Man U, SAF has been able to transition a newer generation in a relatively smooth fashion because the team never experienced a severe drop off when Scholes and Giggs would start on the bench. When Nani and say Gibson started ahead of them, SAF gave both the youngsters confidence by selecting them. At the same time, they understood they were on a short leash, because if they didn't, then the likes of Giggs and Scholes subbing in for them would be completely understood by the youngsters, and the two veterans would still be made to feel important.

However, because of the combination of 1)pressure that the egos of veterans Seedorf and Rino create for Max, and 2) the fact that he doesn't have the 'listen or get out' aura of a Hiddink, SAF or Jose, if he doesn't get his reshuffle correct quickly, there's always that chance that he'll lose the support of the veterans he drops at any time. Therefore, as far as dressing room stability goes, there's always that fine line for him as long as they are here - and apprehension to risk that is understandable.

That's why, despite the obvious changes we here feel he should make, it's tougher for him. He's the one who has to look at Seedorf and Rino in the face every day, and deal with the ripple effects that their egos would have upon team morale.

For this reason, I am compelled to grant Allegri patience. HOWEVER, that point where playing the old guard yields mediocre results is NOW. After the Madrid performances, with the murders row of matches we have coming up, and all the talent in the squad at his disposal, now is the time for Max to make his changes, make them correctly, and truly establish himself as in control of the team. If he doesn't, then we know he's not the man for the job.

Regarding his substitutions though? The blame for these fall on nobody but him. And for this, his leash in my eyes has shortened. When SAF transitions the new-gen in, his substitutions are always timely. If he sees something that he thinks will compromise the result of that very game, then he'll make his change in the first half if he has to. Allegri has sadly not shown that same competence..

Managing Milan is different from managing Cagliari in that at Milan, the coach almost has to prove himself to the players that he can win. At Cagliari, most of the players are happy to be in Serie A, focused only on trying to impress you no matter who you are, and without ego, trying to crack the starting XI. Allegri was surely a shrewd manager of Cagliari, and made the most of his situation there. However, the ego management aspect of managing big clubs is something he's unaccustomed to, and a factor that will ultimately make or break his time here over this next month.

If the above cited article is to be believed, and we see something resembling the lineups that Dracoris and/or Han posted earlier, then Allegri will earn himself more patience out the likes of myself...