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Massimiliano Allegri is known for his desire to win by any means, even by the odd goal, but that has gone out of the window at AC Milan so far.
As La Gazzetta dello Sport report this morning, the 3-0 win at Udinese could have been a fluke, but the Coppa Italia win proves that Allegri’s Milan knows how to win while having fun. Far from being a pushover, his team instead reach the finish line much earlier than their opponents.
In the league, they sealed the win against the Bianconeri early in the second half; against Lecce, they secured the result after an hour, without any particular pressure. The goal tally could have been even higher, both in the last league game and in the Coppa Italia round of 32. The ‘corto muso’ (winning by a nose) has gone.
This is a Milan side that plays well and entertains, without forgetting to be solid, just as Max likes. It’s his best start at Milan: in other years under Max, the Rossoneri had won a maximum of three in their first six competitive matches. This time, five.
Not only that, but it’s one of his brightest starts in general. In terms of goals scored, only in a couple of seasons at Juventus did an Allegri team score more, and they had Higuain and Dybala in 2017-18, and Cristiano Ronaldo the following year.
The entertainers
Milan’s 12 goals this season have been scored by various players. Christian Pulisic has five of them, but Youssouf Fofana and Ruben Loftus-Cheek have scored a goal each, Strahinja Pavlovic has one, as do the forwards Rafael Leao, Christopher Nkunku and Santiago Gimenez.
All the forwards in the squad have scored, as have half the midfielders. And the attacking potential is still partially untapped: Leao has been out since scoring a header against Bari, and is expected on the bench against Napoli.
Then there’s Jashari, a dynamic midfielder who Modric and Rabiot can push into finding space in the penalty area. The Swiss is expected back some time in November, so other solutions will have to do for now.
Another statistic confirms the attacking ambitions: Milan are clearly the Serie A team with the highest ‘Expected Goals’ in all competitions. They have hit the woodwork 11 times already too, and in second place around Europe are Real Madrid with six, just over half that number.
The 12th man
The fun is for everyone: every player in the squad, including David Odogu and the young Cheveyo Balentien have had minutes to show what they can do.
Beyond the youngsters and the great sages like Modric, there’s a group of players in the prime of their careers: from Alexis Saelemaekers to Fikayo Tomori, Santiago Gimenez to Adrien Rabiot. Everyone is involved and held accountable, and then shares in the successes.
Milan create a lot because they try to control the game, without, of course, neglecting the foundation: the defence. The team is – tied with Liverpool – the one that has allowed the fewest shots on target in the top five European leagues so far: nine.
Of the six matches, five have ended with no goals conceded. Now the rearguard will be put to the test by the Italian champions. They will take on Napoli with a 12th ready to lend support: the fans of the Curva Sud.
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