GdS: ‘Milan change face’ – how and why Allegri plans to rotate vs. Fiorentina

Having drawn against Genoa at San Siro in the last round, AC Milan must respond with a win against Fiorentina, but Massimiliano Allegri will make changes.

As La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) report, Allegri will turn to Samuele Ricci and Ruben Loftus-Cheek. The new team will not include Rafael Leao, who is not at his best and limited in his ability to accelerate quickly.

Youssouf Fofana will be out too, thus concluding a paradoxical week. Yesterday, on his 27th birthday, he received the team’s best wishes and a public message from Allegri, who defended him from criticism after Thursday’s sensational miss.

Max is reshaping his Milan, with five changes. In the past, he has made changes when necessary, due to injuries and suspensions. This time, the need is to manage resources, because the schedule remains busy and today is the third match in a week.

What’s more, just 64 hours will pass between the Genoa game and today’s. It is not enough for everyone, even for FIFA, who are in fact considering a change to the universal regulation to make it a minimum 72 hours before games.

Necessary rotation

A bit of turnover is a necessity, especially for the most used players so far. Among them is Luke Modric, who has started 18 of 18 games in the league and has played 1,571 minutes in Serie A so far.

There could be another development in the middle: in the last training session, a warning light came on regarding Adrien Rabiot’s condition, which isn’t the best due to a minor knock. He will be monitored this morning, and Samuele Ricci will replace him if he is not available.

Sub-par form, however, has held Leao back. The situation is different with the Portuguese, as are his technical characteristics. Rafa needs his sprint, and if physical ailments limit his running, it’s a problem. Leao at reduced speed isn’t the real Leao, so he will start on the bench.

So, Niclas Füllkrug will partner Christian Pulisic. It will be the new No. 9’s debut as a starter after a couple of good substitute appearances, against Cagliari and Genoa, showing spirit and getting involved in the game. His last start was in October, against Arsenal, for West Ham.

Changes are also on the cards in other departments. Koni De Winter will replace the suspended Fikayo Tomori, and Pervis Estupinan replaces Davide Bartesaghi, who is still unaccustomed to playing in a series of matches. A four-man defence was tried in training, but is not expected to be used.