CM: Meeting history – De Winter set to show progression against former coach

Tonight, Koni De Winter is expected to return to the AC Milan lineup, and he will do so against a former coach. 

In the past few days, it has seemed increasingly possible that De Winter will be a part of the Milan back three for this weekend’s game, and it seems like it would be a game of history for the Belgian, given who the coaches are.

Gilardino and Allegri

As Calciomercato.com writes, there is no knowing who will know the defender better between Massimiliano Allegri and Alberto Gilardino. When he arrived in Italy, he was launched by the Italian coach at Juventus.

However, minutes were limited, so he departed for Genoa, who were coached by Gilardino. It was not a case of rushing the embedding process, though. Instead, he brought him through patiently, and whilst he normally played on the right, his quality was clear.

Photo by Claudio Villa/AC Milan via Getty Images

When Dragusin was sold to Tottenham Hotspur, the Italian moved the defender centrally, where he took on further, as the Rossoblu earned safety comfortably at the end of the season. However, the story would not continue much longer, with him being sacked in the early parts of the 2024/25 Serie A season.

Whilst he may not be a protagonist for the Rossoneri yet, like he was for Gilardino, he could certainly be one on Friday night.