Can't believe we're playing like this against these f@ckers. Of all teams to play like this against

Rebic should come on for Samu

I think y'all have underestimated how devastating Atalanta can be.

I did not. I agreed with you before the game

But I certainly expected a better performance than this

We can't even make three passes in a row. So out of depth.

Ilicic is literally killing us by himself FFS

Playing Kalulu did not help

Agreed

Always too green, especially for this kind of game

Completely outplayed. The better team won.

Yes, on every aspect. It only shows how still limited we are.

But Pioli made their job easy. Gasperini won the tactical battle to be sure, but playing Kalulu and Meite sealed the deal easily.

I think this should be a moment of reflection. The way we play, it's OK against low/mid tier teams. We'll get the 3 points there, which is why we're top of the table. But against the big boys and teams who play great, fast football, we're completely out of depth.

Terrible performances all around, starting with Zlatan. Tonight he showed his true limits.

Agreed with all of that

But certain players have been really bad today

Theo and Calabria have both been bad. Kjear seems a bit off the pace, Kalulu just not ready for these kind of games. Samu and Leao both terrible on the wings and Kessie and Tonali have allowed themselves to get dominated in the center of the pitch

Mentality is the problem here as well. Hopefully Ibra and Mario can work on that aspect as well. Because tonight we started with this timid performance, never wanting to be in control of this game.

Oh and Kessie had a horror performance as well. Should have scored that chance for 1-2 plus the penalty was utterly stupid.

Don't even mention the "constantly improving" Tonali. This season I've given up on him completely.

But I'm also willing to say that Hernandez is mostly only good with Rebić in tandem.

I can only imagine our performances taking a dip from here. This could be really bad mentally.

Funny you pick on Zlatan first. I think you're completely off on that one. True limits? The whole midfield gave up and our flanks with Samu and Leao were inefficient as ever.

Oh come on, let's not overreact just yet. We played collectively bad, agreed. But let's not get ahead of ourselves and overdramatize just yet.

Did their keeper make a single save?

We're losing all the battles

Second to every 50/50

Honestly expected so much better than this

And for me it's not about mentality. We've been very good against the top teams this season. We just came out with the wrong mentality today

Disagree about Theo. He's played great games without Rebic

Today he's just been out of it completely

Re Zlatan, we had no midfield today. Any striker would struggle

Lol, Inter drew to Udine

Just perfect. Even when we f@ck up big time they cannot take advantage

Tough against a CL side like Atalanta, comes to show the difference in exposure to top flight European football would render.

The league is a marathon, not a sprint, so I'll take this loss and expect Milan to finish in a CL spot if the team keeps up its form.

The league title? That shall be decided in May, not in January.

Switched off.

I can only hope that this performance serves as a huge kick up the rear rather than being a demoralising factor

I think we have Inter mid-week in the Coppa. Tbh I'd rather we play full rotation there and bow out of the Coppa. We won't need the extra load right now

Once again, the absences factored in, but this is the first game where we really did not show any spirit.

You really trying to nitpick on my comments after everything I said prior to this match? Really, man?

But it always amazes me, even after years and years with you guys here, how negative and pessimistic you are...

As I started reading your post I figured Inter scored a late goal and won. But no. They drew! So I wouldn't complain much and thank god Udine forced them to lose points which made us finally winter champions.

Nitpick, huh? Sorry, but Ibra is not to blame here at all.

What did I say prior to this match? I showed no fear of the ever great and devastating Atalanta. I said this is a true test. And we failed. So what? I somehow lost the right to comment?

We've played teams who are in the CL an won. I feel like we're allowing Atalanta to hold some sort of hudu on us. We should have made a statement with this game, instead we came out with a whimper

Theo, Calabria, Samu and Leao completely let us down today. Kessie and Tonali were overrun. Pioli made the mistake of starting Meite here when he should have gone with the usual setup. Changing the approach for an opponent like Atalanta is a mistake

The title should still be the goal. I can't believe we're talking about making top 4 as if it should be our biggest ambition at this point. We're first in the table at the end of January. I absolutely do not agree with saying that top 4 should be our only goal at this point. We've come this far, why set limits that would only shackle you to mediocrity?

That was actually a sort of optimistic comment.

I apologise. By all means, go on then. Preach the greatness of this team. Another debacle after the 5-0 from last year against the 'half-baked' team.

Get out of jail free card used today.

Shoddy display, weak team, yet our title rivals could only draw.

This is our big escape.

Now we get as many players back as possible ASAP and move on.

We've been given a big help here.

I admit calling them half-baked was a mistake. But they are a strange team and I don't intend starting fearing teams like Atalanta. Respect yes, fear no.

And who said anything about greatness? I only said this is a test for us to show how good or even great we are.

I see this defeat really got to you.

Shows you all. Is it perhaps pessimistic optimism?

Not saying mediocre, on the contrary han a CL birth is a HUGE improvement to what this team had been accustomed to in the past I don't know how many years.

Being 1st place and finishing first place is surely the icing on the cake. But I would not call this team mediocre if they do achieve a CL birth and not finish 1st.

This is called managing expectations. If Milan don't achieve 1st place it is mediocre, not that's what managing expectations is all about my friend

Saying this defeat got to me when I feared it while some of you were riding the hype train is sort of a weird thing to say.

Pretty sure fears coming true is a pretty upsetting thing to experience. But of course, it's nothing personal from him, as you clearly know!

This!

I'm not going to over-analyse this any longer, we came out with the wrong mindset and paid for all our mistakes today.

Pioli approached this incorrectly, and it was not aided by some truly bad displays from the players we rely on the most

Hakan imo would have been the difference today, we've shown how much we really miss him making that link between the midfield and attack.


Meh, could be. But it has more to do with relief tbh

Every time we've made a mis-step, Inter have not been able to capitalise, and not just today.

As Danny said, let's just focus on recovering our important players and move one from this. We have 3 very winnable games before the Derby while Inter have Lazio before us. So let's make sure we get that 3 point cushion back before then

The Coppa derby I couldn't give a sh!t about. Pioli should play the kids so we can bow out of it


I get your point, but having made it this far, saying that CL should be our goal is a bad outlook and just gives the team leeway to relax when that should not be the case. Why should we not aim for the title. If we don't win it in the end then I want to know that we did our best in every game. And unfortunately today is the first time this season that I can easily say that we didn't come out with the right mentality and we didn't show our usual fighting spirit.

Even in games where we lost points before today, I could always say that the team did their best, today that was not the case

Dude, of course I'm upset. I doubt there's a single soul in this forum who's not upset. But it's one thing losing when you feared so, and another losing when you're convinced you can win. Pretty sure the latter is more upsetting. So, what are you even talking about.

I don't think it's a mindset problem. Y'all have to understand, or I'm hoping you've understood by now, how this team wins games.

We slow down the tempo, jog around following our game plan to a tee. We make as few mistakes as possible, and capitalise on those few occasions we create. But we don't play great, fast, unpredictable football. As a matter of fact, teams who play like that are our biggest weakness. Because they push our limits and expose our flaws.

Inter. Napoli. Atalanta. These three teams are our biggest threats in the league. Whilst we faced Napoli in a very bad moment for them and won against Inter while suffering like crazy for the whole match, against Atalanta we could only twiddle our thumbs and watch. Or Lille in the Europa League. Same argument.

Juve, Roma, Lazio and everyone else, we can handle. Because they are more adaptable to our gameplay. Against Juve we only lost because we had half the starting squad out, but as I stated after the match with a full squad we would have won.

That's why I feared Atalanta tonight. They're like kryptonite to us, and it became fairly obvious throughout the match.

I must say, I disagree with you.

Firstly, I'm not riding any hype train, you obviously misread or misinterpreted my posts. I was merely saying that I do not fear Atalanta and yes, I imagine a world were we beat them at home. You make it sound like Atalanta is Barcelona with Messi and Iniesta at their prime.

The way you described our gameplan and "how we win" is shocking to me. I have my own eyes however; sure, we don't play football as enjoying as Barcelona or Arsenal in their prime, and yes, we ain't even (obviously) a great team. But we do play good football IMO and we can't be reduced to what you said.

Also, saying that we "can manage" Juventus but our biggest problems are teams we already defeated (and may I say we seem to have no trouble playing Napoli) is rubbish. I completely disagree. I also disagree with your assessment that Inter play "great, fast, unpredictable football". IMO they are a limited squad with limited ideas and as strict of a gameplan as our own with only one creator and one true danger - Lukaku.

I really hoped our team would show character today. Atalanta humiliated us last season, and I expected much more from Pioli and the team. But I think Han is right when saying that we started with the wrong mindset and IMO Pioli's wrong decisions made things unbearable.

Oh, and as for the Coppa game... it couldn't have come in a worse time. Another defeat could seriously damage our mindset, mentality and approach. And could boost Inter to chase us more effectively in the league.

I also fear the Pioli effect. I've seen his teams (Fiorentina, Lazio especially) starting great seasons and then spiraling down the drain come spring. I really hope this won't happen with us.

One last bit: don't you think we should go for a RW during this market? Samu is really a piss poor player.

I think that they can play some of the best football in Europe.



Us, good football? Can't see it. Don't know, maybe cos I was raised watching Ancelotti's Milan I have a different concept of what good football is. To me this Milan has a different approach. It's a team built on achieving results. And I've come to accept that. In the beginning of the season I was complaining how badly we were playing against the various Rio Ave, Crotone, Spezia, Udinese etc. But then I realised this is just who we are. We're not flashy, attractive or dominating. We just get the job done and move on.



We won the derby by having two shots on target and defending for the whole match. We just got lucky. It happens in football.

And I said we faced Napoli on a bad moment for them. And since you seem to think we have no trouble playing them, let me show you the stats of the last 20 games in Serie A between us and them: Napoli 9 wins, Milan 4 wins, 7 draws. Doesn't seem like we've fared very well, does it?

I'm not directing my comments to the team for them to relax, I'm directing it to this forum so we may take it easy when we fume at the team for not finishing 1st place. If in the end we do, it's the icing on the cake.

Atalanta pressed Milan all over the pitch. Players like Theo, Diaz, Castillejo, Ibra, Leao, Calabria, et al all got their fair share of pressing during the 90 mins and were contained very well. If anything, this should be a lesson learned by Pioli and Co to assess situations differently going forward.

Don't think the team did anything wrong, it was just that Atalanta had the right game plan and executed it very well. Maybe Pioli should have started Diaz instead of Meite or Huage/Rebic instead of Castillejo, but the outcome could have very well been the same.

Anyways, two defeats in 19 games is an incredible feat for this Milan. Another 19 games in Serie A to look forward to before the end of the season.

I wasn't upset. I took it as a sign. Inter couldn't take full points knowing they had to and facing a bottom 5 side.

So I'm optimistic.

As Han agrees, let's take this on the chin, use the fact we got away with one here and move on.

You're not upset we got crushed 3-0 at home? OK.

The thing is, slip-ups happen to everyone. Take ManCity or Liverpool this season for instance, 2-5 vs Leicester and 7-1 vs Aston Villa, respectively.

But what makes this slip-up different is that it showed we cannot face teams that play great football with our usual strategy, especially when we're missing 3-4 key players.

Pioli needs to understand our limits, and he must adapt so the team can respond. And that doesn't mean adding an extra defensive mid out of role. We need that so-called Plan B, otherwise next season in the CL we're going to get decimated against opponents who will bring the big guns.

Of course. 'always different when it's us'.

You aware what made Liverpool's different is they're absolutely rank this season?

You aware Leicester are world class this season?

It's a loss. Stop looking deeper into it. I mean f*ck sake you defended the Juve loss because we were weak. Now you're slaughtering a loss despite us being weak.

I'm done here. Said all I want to say. Have a nice day

X-O you keep on mentioning Ancelotti's Milan, Liverpool, City... like these are comparable examples with us now. Even more, you make it sound like there's nothing in between, like for instance Milan of Pioli can't be labeled as a team that plays "good football" but not on an atomic level.

You honestly expect us to play that kind of football ever again? I don't see the point in mentioning the Milan od 02 or 03. It's a bygone era and you are not that old to be constrained by the past. You are aware that Carletto's Milan (who played occasionally also terrible football, like all teams) in a legendary team? You are aware that even Carletto never regained that style and gameplay at Paris, Madrid or Munich?

Sorry, I don't see much point in these comparisons.

As for the Pioli part, I'm still perplexed. If I understood you correctly, you think Milan is keeping it simple because Pioli knows he has a limited team (he himself might be limited in terms of tactical knowledge as well, yes?). If this is the truth and the core idea of our play is sticking to the plan then a plan B is something we intrinsically cannot adopt. Have you seen any team that has a plan B in our range/league?

I think Milan is necessarily reduced to that by definition. Next season I have little doubt Milan will end up being trashed by various Bayerns, Madrids or Citys of this world. And perhaps even the season after that. Plan A, B or C, I don't see that is avoidable. This is precisely why this scudetto dream is so important. It's a peculiar aberation that should not have happened in a otherwise predictable slow plan for growth and stability.

Oh man, why do you take things out of context? When did I ever compare this Milan to that of Ancelotti? I only said that the way we play cannot be associated to good football by the standards I personally have of that term. To me good football stands fort something entirely different. The way Inter played vs Juve, or Lazio vs Roma last weekend. That's darn good football. When have we ever played like that?

Also, I can totally compare this Milan to other clubs who are leading the standings in their respective leagues in terms of results. It's a way of justification that even top spot teams can have a bad day once in a while.



Yes, that's what I believe. That the way we play allows us to achieve results against most teams in the league (first place, hello), but not against those teams who play a certain type of football that exposes our limits. And for this we need to have a Plan B. E.g. how do you fend off against Atalanta? Do you put more muscle in midfield? Do you press with higher intensity? Do you just park the bus and rely on counter attacks?

Because we simply cannot approach games like this as we usually approach other games, otherwise the 5-0's and 3-0's then happen.

Once again. I think everyone is looking into this too deeply

We came out timid, Pioli tried to change something that has worked for months now to accommodate Atalanta of all teams, that says it all. We didn't change our approach when we played teams like Inter and Juve, yet Pioli felt he had to make this change. i understand that we were missing Hakan, but Diaz has been playing well in that position, there was no reason to change our approach and put in a CM in that position.

The team was timid, and the performances of players we've come to rely on were just not good enough.

As long as we reply as we need to against Bologna, that is all that matters.

The Coppa game against Inter is a big inconvenience here. For me, I'd rather we bow out. But as someone mentioned above, it could have a bad effect on the team.

And I wholly disagree that we do not play good football or that we are slow. The main issue here is that we're continuously changing the team, so that cohesiveness we saw last summer has yet to be seen this season. We'll see more fluidity once we get Hakan and Bennacer back imo

@X-O, it's funny how you still say Inter play "good football" but we don't. I think you're being very harsh.

A defeat against Inter could hurt us. I see Pioli will rest Ibra and start with Mario, Rebić and Alexis. Good. I'd also try out Tomori or give Musacchio one last nod.

Is our mercato over?

Oh, and Han, I really think Pioli distrusts and dislikes Diaz. Putting Meite up front was not that much of a tactical decision IMO; had we Hakan, we would have started him.

Also, do you guys remember we won against Atalanta at Bergamo last season quite comfortably? Or do I remember this incorrectly?