AC Milan vs Cesena

How often we have had to speak of a game defining a manager's future in the past 18 months. Failure to defeat Cesena at home may well see Inzaghi's tenure cut prematurely short and despite their lowly standing in the table, there is a very real fear that we may fail to overcome them. Cesena are coming off a brave 2-2 draw with league leaders Juventus and will be playing with the feverish intensity of a relegation side that knows it must leave everything on the pitch in every remaining game. Milan meanwhile have been listless in 2015, registering just one solitary victory against a Parma side in an extraordinary state of disarray.

There were whisperings throughout the week that Menez may be dropped but Pippo appeared to confirm that he would persevere with his two striker system in his press conference. We will be boosted by the return of Riccardo Montolivo to the squad, whilst Alex has been included despite his recent surgery on a broken nose but Diego Lopez is suspended in addition to our lengthy injury list. As a result, two Primavera goalkeepers have been included. Stefano Gori, who turns 19 next month, has been a consistent inclusion in the matchday squad but it will be a new experience for Gianluigi Donnarumma who has only just been promoted to the Primavera and will only turn 16 on Wednesday. Though both Gori and Donnarumma will merely be spectators at the match, it will be amazing to think that there is a 22 year age gap between two of our matchday goalkeepers.

AC Milan Squad: Abbiati, Gori, Donnarumma; Antonelli, Alex, Bocchetti, Bonera, Rami, Felicioli, De Santis; Essien, De Jong, Montolivo, Muntari, Poli, Suso, Van Ginkel; Bonaventura, Cerci, Destro, Honda, Menez, Pazzini

Cesena Squad: Leali, Nica, Giorgi, Lucchini, Carbonero, De Feudis, Rodriguez, Brienza, Volta, Krajnc, Magnusson, Djuric, Succi, Capelli, Mudingayi, Dalmonte, Agliardi, Renzetti, Ze Eduardo, Bressan, Defrel

Despite our poor form and Cesena's desperation for a result, I do think we'll stumble to victory. I'm predicting a 2-1 win with Destro and Bonaventura on target.

If we lose, this could be the straw that breaks the camel's back.

1-0 win

The line-ups have been released. I'm a bit concerned about our right flank but there's little we can do with our injury issues at fullback.

Milan: Abbiati; Bonera, Rami, Bocchetti, Antonelli; Montolivo, De Jong, Poli; Bonaventura; Destro, Menez

Milan bench: Gori, Donnarumma, Alex, De Santis, Felicioli, Essien, Muntari, Van Ginkel, Suso, Honda, Cerci, Pazzini

Cesena: Leali; Nica, Lucchini, Volta, Renzetti; Giorgi, De Feudis, Ze Eduardo; Brienza; Defrel, Djuric

Cesena bench: Agliardi, Bressan, Capelli, Kranjc, Magnusson, Carbonero, Mudingayi, Dalmonte, Succi, Rodriguez

How funny would it be if Ze Eduardo scored lol

I don't understand why Jack is playing as a 10 when we have Honda on the bench...

Poli thinking he's prime Xavi with those twists and turns

it was very average win for us. at some point cesena looked like scoring because of our mistake.

and montolivo.. i always see over and over again that he doesnt know how to control ball, like when he gets the ball and is being surrounded by defenders, all he does is shoot to nowhere hoping it will get to fellow player.

he is the worst milan playmaker, or central midfielder i have ever seen.

he has played like more than 60 games and he doesnt even have 10 assists to his name. thats pretty shocking. and his passing accuracy is so poor, even de jong eclipses him on passing accuracy.

there are lot of areas still that needs to be improved. i just am so sad to see milan playing football like this... its just humiliating and shocking that we barely won this game.

Don't know what to say, a typically painful performance.

We either send hopeful long balls up or wait for Menez to run all the way back to our defenders, pick up the ball and waste it.

We have no gameplan, no identity, and it seems no hope for the foreseeable future.

Compared to our previous games, we played much better in the final third. Though watching Menez waste chance after chances was frustrating.

I really have no idea what game you were watching Jesp, Monty was fine today. Regardless, your complaints about his assist numbers are hardly fair. Central midfielders should never be judged on their stats. Iniesta's arguably the most technically gifted central midfielder of the past decade and he's never accumulated many assists. Central midfielders who do tend to have high numbers of assists typically manage the feat through set piece deliveries - Kroos for instance this season - which tends to come down to the organisation of the team, not simply the quality of the ball.

Regarding the game, it was an uninspiring performance but a professional one. Cesena had their moments but overall they failed to threaten us and it was a straight forward win. Issues remain regarding the tempo of our play and the fluidity of our ball movement however each member of the team played well for the most part. The major exception was Destro who was left isolated throughout the game and rarely contributed. To live on the edge of the game and ride the shoulder of the last defender is very much Destro's style and one must be realistic about how often he can be expected to influence the play, however this went beyond play style. Given the limited time Mattia has had with the team, it may yet be chalked up to a lack of chemistry and understanding. His movement was out of sync with the expectations of those around him, with several balls being played in which were perpendicular to Destro's run whilst he drifted uncertainly around the box during our best interchanges between Menez, Bonaventura, Antonelli and our midfielders. The service in the air to Destro was for the most part poor, though we put in a couple of reasonable crosses but more of concern was how often Destro received the ball to feet so as to turn and run, a very real weapon of his due to his acceleration off the mark. He had some poor first touches at time which compounded the situation in what was a disappointing performance and a situation that Inzaghi must rectify. It is his job to ensure that Destro is receiving service. There's no point bringing in a centre forward simply so he can be a paper weight. It did not help him that we predominantly tried to force the game through the flanks, an odd decision given our shape and the absence of an attacking right back. Menez and Bonaventura both tend to drift left and duly did so to combine with the excellent Antonelli but we lacked the ability to quickly switch the play to the right to take advantage of the open space and to try to stretch the Cesena backline. Early on, Poli was pushing up into the space a RW might be expected to occupy when waiting for the switch, with Bonera tucked into a narrow midfield position that meant Cesena could easily reorganise when the switch of play did come. When Bonera did find the ball out wide though it was beyond his capability to drive at the defence and we lacked the movement to provide many other options in possession. Perhaps it is a tactic that will yield fruit upon Abate's return but it struck me simply as unbalanced and predictable. If we persist with the 4-3-1-2, we have to be able to play through the centre and we must be able to switch the ball from side to side quickly so as to stretch the backline, creating space against teams who sit deep. Cesena were not capable of handling Menez but most Serie A sides will be better equipped to strangle our individual efforts and then we must rely on moving as a team in the final third.

Regarding other individual performances, Menez had a positive game overall I thought but one again marred by selfishness. His ability to run at players had the Cesena defence in a frenzy the entire match and they often had to resort to simply fouling him. He was involved in the majority of our best build ups but unfortunately he consistently misplayed the final ball. His tendency to take too many touches often saw the opportune moment to play in a team mate pass by before he finally made the pass by which time the space had been compressed and he himself was under pressure. His run from one box to another was representative of many of his efforts. A brilliant piece of play ruined by Menez's attempt to take on one too many opponents rather than slide the ball into space for a teammate, in this case the oncoming run of Bonaventura. This, along with his decision to shoot despite being marshalled by two men rather than playing the ball into space to meet Montolivo's overlapping run into the box stood out as moments of destructive selfishness. He made a few technical errors throughout the match but I am always willing to forgive a technical error. Not playing for the team though is a far more serious matter.

Bonaventura was solid throughout and must be commended for his ferocious shot to score our first goal. If we persist with the diamond beyond this season I would prefer a new recruit but he is a capable facilitator of play and able to drive the ball forward himself, in addition to having a decent shot. He doesn't have extraordinary vision but he brings other qualities to the position and his ability to also play out wide gives us flexibility within the game.

Montolivo performed well on his comeback; he was combative in midfield and he returned control of the game to us after a few weeks of chaos in the middle of the park. De Jong flew into tackles all night and found the fullbacks well when on the ball though I felt that we needed more from him in possession in general. It was not an issue due to the fact that we scored early and were content to hold the lead but the team's overall intensity and purposefulness in possession would not likely suffice against most opponents. Poli was a bit of a passenger at times but again it was a reasonable performance and he was unfortunate to see his header chalked off for offside. Though I do believe the interpretation of what is passive involvement in the play is too lenient in general, one would expect that goal to stand under most referees. Fortunately the decision did not influence the game greatly.

Bocchetti had his best game since arriving. He was horribly out of position on one occasion and picked up a needless yellow card but for the most part he was proactive and confident. I still don't trust him but credit where it is due, he was a worthy contributor on the night. Bonera was decent, though he let Ze Eduardo get on the inside when attempting to meet Defrel's cross. I also did not see the build up to Abbiati's incredible save at the end of the first half but I'm just going to assume it was probably Bonera's fault that the shot even occurred.

Pippo's introduction of Cerci so late on was once more bordering on insulting. Why we push so hard for players in the market only to barely use them will forever remain a mystery. At least at Atletico, Cerci could sit on the bench in the Champions League, not against relegation fodder.

Finally, credit to Cesena for trying to take the game to us in the second half. I felt sorry for Djuric being hacked all game despite being one of the cleanest centre forwards in Italy. They moved the ball very well for short periods of time and on another day they might have equalised late on instead of conceding again. Hopefully they continue to fight bravely against the threat of relegation.

I missed this game, so I'll just make some general observations about where our team is at right now.

Firstly, I can't comment specifically on Montolivo's return, but I will say that our midfield needs to lift as a unit and produce more assists overall. Throughout the entirety of our post-Scudetto period, our team has struggled badly in creating chances. This is undeniable. As noted above, the frequency and the quality of the service to the forwards has been severely lacking. Menez continually dropping deep to get the ball is symptomatic of this problem.

I backed Bonaventura before we signed him and I was extremely surprised and excited when we got him in that deadline day deal. I think he's a vast improvement on our other similar midfielders. He offers a dynamism that we've lacked since prime KPB combined with the work-rate and impact of Nocerino in his first glorious season at our club. Unlike those now departed players, I think Jack might become a more permanent feature of this team if he keeps up the good work.

I'm concerned that Dos described Poli as a "passenger". This was my criticism of him in an earlier thread. I hope that he has fewer "reasonable" performances and more outstanding performances. We simply cannot afford to have a player on the field who isn't offering something special each week. Poli is still a capable player compared to the likes of Muntari and Essien, but he should be wary that come next autumn he might find himself on the bench if he doesn't stand up soon.

Some might say Bonera's name on the team-sheet is alright given that we have some injuries. No. Bonera is a player who is well worse than bench quality and it is shameful that he is even on the field in 2015. He is completely untrustworthy with and without the ball. There is no limit to how long Pippo will go without promoting a primavera player to the first XI and this concerns me greatly, as always.

As I said last game, Cerci must be wondering what he has done do deserve to be on our bench most of the time, when there are so many slackers out there on the field. We know he is quality, but he needs to be given confidence and that means consistent game time.

Finally, I'm not sure how much a victory over Cesena means in terms of our team's improvement. On one hand, Cesena have been tenacious battlers this season. Conversely, aren't Cesena a team that Milan should always be beating?

Passenger might have been a harsh term to use as Poli continued to have a presence defensively throughout the game but fatigue always tends to be an issue in the second half for Andrea and Bonera's presence at right back, in combination with the tendencies of Menez and Bonaventura meant that options to combine were limited. His best moments came when interchanging with Montolivo to escape Cesena's pressure but we were too deep as a team overall in the second half and it meant that he rarely got the ball in meaningful positions to contribute to our attack which is a pity as his ability to give and go in the opposition half is one of his best qualities.

dostoevsky wrote:Passenger might have been a harsh term to use as Poli continued to have a presence defensively throughout the game but fatigue always tends to be an issue in the second half for Andrea and Bonera's presence at right back, in combination with the tendencies of Menez and Bonaventura meant that options to combine were limited. His best moments came when interchanging with Montolivo to escape Cesena's pressure but we were too deep as a team overall in the second half and it meant that he rarely got the ball in meaningful positions to contribute to our attack which is a pity as his ability to give and go in the opposition half is one of his best qualities.

The most annoying thing about Poli is that he has a great skill-set and we all know he has the technique to be a classy midfielder. We can see his little flourishes and his quick, accurate, short passing every now and then. But sadly these are just brief moments in games where he often goes a good length of time without imposing himself. There are some players who have presence on the field and Poli is not one of them at the moment. The rest of the team has limited his ability to play to his full potential, but that's a bit of an excuse considering that some of our other players are putting their best foot forward despite the difficult circumstances. Take Antonelli, for example. He's been given a chance in what has been a problem area at Milan for years and has put in some massive work each and every game I've seen him, no matter how pathetic the players around him are. I want that sort of urgency and sense of purpose from Andrea.

Good points Dosto . Agreed with Es too , you're right .


Jesp , well , i don't agree but nevertheless i honestly do understand your post , both about our play and for Montolivo . But like Es said , compared to our previous games , at least that was , something. There was a plan , the team followed it and it worked. It wasn't 'good football' , it wasn't a performance that would allow us to say , here , Milan found their way , but at least it wasn't that an ugly borefest which would lose us points too . As for Montolivo , you may not like his wayward ways or his 'body-language' , but bear in mind his injuries , he needs time to get back to his best. I thought he did well yesterday , worked well in the midfield . The first goal actually came from his actions in the midfield. It may not be an assist , but without him it would never have happened. Similar to this , many of our goals since he arrived at Milan , involved him. The final pass is extremely important (Menez ffs) , but many things come before that and Monty is responsible to create the basis for a final pass , he's not actually tasked for assisting himself. In any case , he was never that type of player . When he does , it's a bonus , not a requirement for him. Central midfielders vary in role and kind , Montolivo is a regista in essence. If the team in front of him can play football with or without him , he will be of immense help. When not , well , his downside will inevitably show. Since he came at Milan he played in his position only for a few months . Beyond that , he's been used by all coaches to do tasks he's not ideally suited to do . He's a jack of all trades , but that type never really excells in anything. In front of the defence though , his best traits show , especially when he consistently played there. Right now , he needs to get back to his best , there's only so much we can say about Montolivo.

What bugs me still is why no Honda at AMF. I can't complain because Pippo's decision on Jack proved correct. So. Whilst i want to moan , i will keep it for the moment , maybe next game it happens , if we keep the 4-3-1-2...  and that's the thing , isn't it? Inzaghi has always failed to be consistent with anything , other than keep being incosistent.

I'll talk a few more about the players .

Bonera.

In my honest opinion ; for the player he is , he had a good game at RB. His ball control was simply too good for a CB playing RB , his well placed passes , his availability for teammates in the middle of the pitch , made 1-2 good crosses and through balls , he was helpfull for the team. He defended ok and did his best going forward , given that he's not actually a RB and he's 33 these days , that's actually more than we could ask of him. Now , if you expected Bonera to show skill and domination at RB , what can i tell you. I can only tell you that i can't say anything. I won't deny that i thought a better RB would have us doing better yesterday , nevertheless , he did very well given the player he is and what was asked of him. Our left side was better , though . Still , it was positive game for Bonera. That he lost the ball here and there , well that's a given when playing fullback , unless you were Maldini or Lahm , it is .

De Jong.

Very strong game by NDJ . Interceptions , carefull passing , well timed tackles and clearances , one of his usual good performances . One might say it was just Cesena , but he worked very well for this to become obvious. One of his best games this season. It seems though he's set to leave in the end of the season and that's only fair. At this age , staying at this Milan , without CL was already enough. Asking him to stay one more , well , i can see why he won't renew. It's not just about the money Galliani won't give him . He really deserves better , uninspiring player and what not , he has arguably been on top of his game , i can see why he would leave , or ask for more money. Having said that. My only issue with him leaving would be his replacement. A lame replacement for De Jong , Essien type , would have me mad. Give me any good midfielder , either direct replacement or for Monty to step into his position and i am fine with him leaving . It will really be for the best for all involved , for him first and foremost.

Destro.

Need i say it again ? I'll say it again. No matter how good the CF is , when you have Menez doing his bs near him , he will be useless. I still think if this goes on , Destro won't stay , why would he? Menez fks him over and over again. He was visibly frustrated on too many an occasion with Menez and he was absolutely right to do so. Can't even begin to say what he did wrong and how he tried to position himself , he's been lead to have an uninspiring performance , mainly because of Menez . Can't fault Destro for anything. Give him a player near him that will look to utilise him and he will show who he is , there's really nothing more i can say. We can say what we want about the midfield , but there are times the midfielders can only do so much . Sometimes it falls to his partner in crime to sacrifice himself for the main CF and that never , NEVER , happens with Menez.

Menez.

fk you .

Jack.

Right decision by Inzaghi here. He had a great game , unlucky not to score twice with that post. I would like him to pass it more to the CF , though. He doesn't have Honda's vision , but has something else over Honda , he's a better dribbler. He could have used that to assist Destro , but anyway , the game went down this way and he had room to shine on his own . Destro was well guarded by Cesena's defence , so his goal was vital for the win . I must say however , i feel he would be better if he played behind Honda on the left of midfield. We would see some nice playz then . A diamond in the midfield with Montolivo in front of the defence , Jack on the left , De Jong or Poli on the right with Honda as 10 , i still think it would be very strong for Serie A. Most teams would have to concede and sit back , allowing us to play the game to our strengths and not the opposite. Jack lacks the vision necessary to be a 10 , but has most traits a 10 would like to have. So why not do a poor man's Seedorf-Kaka thingy into our gameplan with Jack and Honda ? Not saying they are the same kind of players , not comparing , not saying it will work the same. But we could do with that attacking flair and teamwork our two legendary players used to share between them on the field.

Poli.

I thought Poli had a good game. He scored and it was canceled , but in the locker room a coach would say he scored anyway and would congratulate him . I will do the same. He run a lot , he tried to pass it a lot , he always wants to give 100%. Sometimes it works well for the team , sometimes he just runs like a headless chicken. It mostly worked yesterday. I still think he should be advised to risk more and stop being so conservative , but anyway. I won't complain for keeping the ball and not giving it away for nothing like many of our players have a tendency of doing. As for his stamina , well let me say i think it's mostly him actually giving everything in comparison to many of our players. If he can give that something more , he will and it tires him. My concerns would be his first touch , which is troublesome for a midfielder his age and experience and once again , his reluctance sometimes to push forward , even when he has room. I don't have the inteligence to call if it's wisdom or cowardice , nevertheless he should work on that. Playing it safe is part of the job , being carefull is a necessary element of midfield play , but keep to it 100% and you just stand in midfield playing passes. He needs to become agressive , imo . Thankfully , he did show good signs in this game , both offensively and defensively. He will need more to become a regular , though.

Abbiati.

Dat save. Dat celebration. Dat baldy. Not much else to say here , did his job very well. I actually felt safe with Abbiati under the post yesterday . Abbiati being used sparingly and with care in such games , it might as well work most of the times , imho.

Bocchetti.

See Dosto's post .

Rami.

Meh. I've seen him do much better than that. At least he wasn't a burden. An ok performance , thankfully without serious mistakes . If we do persist with the 4-3-1-2.. It may be good news for him , he should have room to show his offensive qualities more often . For some reason i wasn't impressed with him against Cesena . Seemed nervous to me. But he did ok , i guess.

Antonelli.

Still to early to have a solid opinion on him at Milan , although i mostly like what i see from him. I can say , for the moment , i am happy we got him.

Montolivo i talked earlier . For the subs , i have two things to say 1. Why play Cerci at 85? smh. 2.Why sub Destro out when Menez was being a catastrophe and detrimental to our attacks? All his speed and dribbling mean shit when he cannot use that to our advantage . 1000x times to have a slow and simple player that can make just 1 solid pass for the CF to have a shot at goal , than have have Menez roam his way to nothing 10 times in the entire game. 1000x times.

As for Inzaghi , all i can say is he studied Cesena well . The team actually did better than previous matches , in many fronts , but as long as this thing with Menez continues , i remain pissed with him . I can't stand it anymore. Had it been Honda in his place yesterday the game would have ended at least 3-0. At the very least. Honda has a football IQ , he's an altruist , he's composed , he's delicate in his passing and most of all , has that team mentality in his head. Menez has Menez in his head and it always shows , regardless if he does well or not. As long as Inzaghi allows this , let alone refusing the AMF position to Honda , i can't be satisfied with him. Menez either becomes a teammate and actually looks to help Destro score , or we will lose Destro in the summer , i am 100% sure.

I can't watch this shit as if i am watching a neighbourhood kid challenging the other kid who's the better forward-player. Menez irritates me and makes me rage when i see him do his thingy over and over again. And then some. Even if he scored last game , wasting so many chances and opportunities , making the CF useless , running to nowhere , would all that worth a goal? I don't think so.

I like your idea of a diamond midfield Dante. Jack had his best games with us in his poor mans Di Maria role, and Poli is in good form. A midfield of:
---------------------------Honda
------------------Jack-------------Poli
---------------------------Monty

Would be much better I believe, and it would address the largest concern we all have with our current style of play, which is that we are uncomfortable in possession to say the least.

We severely lack the ability to play the ball out from the back and gradually advance through the pitch with fluid build up. In that sense I can't blame Menez for dropping deep, my issue is he doesn't have the vision or ability to do anything with the ball once he gets it.

The problem with this however is it relies heavily on Montolivo. He still hasn't returned to his levels pre-injury, and if he has a bad game or a sustained drop in form this formation won't work at all. This all hinges on him being able to drop between the two center backs, play the ball through the midfield until it reaches Honda in a position between the lines in the final third, and allow him to work his magic. If he plays bad, we either resort to long balls or playing as a one man team with Menez dropping deep and losing possession immediately.

Well yeah , but would it be it's only this. In order to succesfully pull this off , we would require our defence to step it up too. Positional play and meaningfull retaining of possesion without the defence actively participating in , it's not fisible.

As for Menez , my issue doesn't necessarily reside in his dropping back to the midfield . It's what he does in the final third that makes me rage. How selfish , football-narcissist , arrogant without the credentials , player he is. We are 10 players and Menez. If and when Menez is the central forward , i don't complain because of such things. Right now he isn't , but continues to act like that. That is a disaster . No exaggeration imo. A disaster.

I don't mind if he falls back and tries to do things. If he feels he can pull it off , i don't mind. Most always he doesn't , but anyway. You're right in what you say of course , the issue though isn't that he does it , it's how that turns out for the team. And it turns out being negative for the CF , above all.

He must really see some bench imo . So far he doesn't even feel the need to help the CF actually be usefull. All Destro did yesterday was try to position himself and then moan and raise his hands high in frustration. That's all he did. When a CF knows he doesn't have the help and support from his teammates , he won't perform. Menez needs to do his job properly , or we will all continue to suffer with Destro , never mention having to watch Menez wasting chance after chance.

As for the midfield . Again , the defence needs to be in line too , it's not just the form of the midfield . But yeah , i think at least this set of midfielders in this way would really help us win games we didn't so far. At least that , right now , should be concidered seriously. We have lost so many points against lesser teams that i already consider this a failure of a season. We must take the game to opponents now and to do that , we need to be in control and have the first say. I think this midfield would allow us to do so , but we'll see.

Anyway , I agree with the points you made.

Marcello Lippi minutes after Grosso's penalty kick sealed Italy's 4th World Cup in 2006: "I, along with my staff, have worked extremely hard, but, in the end, it's the players' quality that decides everything in Football."

Coming from a seasoned manager like Lippi, I take that as a given. Thereby, I am of the opinion that this Milan team will have outdone themselves if, by the end of 2014-15, we are ranked anything above 7th.

I mean, sure, Menez and Lopez have been ass-savers virtually all season and the rest of the team have either been injured, or out of form; so, we really can't expect this team to even challenge for the 3rd.

A great team boasts good players all over, along with a few great ones. Milan, instead, has a combination of the horrible, the hardly-decent and a few good ones. And unlike the past when we had a talisman to bail us out every now and then, we are exposed, toothless and out of options.

Let us wait on the take-over news. Right now, things are so effed up that even a Zamparini would be an improvement. If we do manage to get this shambles of a team together by 2018-19, I'll be a happy man.

On the topic, I suppose this Cesena win was just a breather, before we take another inevitable beating in the coming weeks. I am not being pessimistic at all and do not feel sad, mind you, just being cool-headed and realistic. I am a Milanista and right now, my beloved team can't play if Berlusconi's life depended on it. Fine. We'll make it right, right? Worse teams have managed to come back with such a bang the whole continent was taken by storm.

I am waiting...