1 week ago
8
Santiago Gimenez is without a goal in over 500 minutes of league action, and Massimiliano Allegri’s patience seems to have expired.
As La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) write this morning, after eight league games, Gimenez is still without a goal. When he moved to Italy from Feyenoord, he left as a man who had scored 65 goals in the Netherlands, with the promise of being the striker for the future.
Instead, Gimenez struggled last season and hasn’t netted in the league yet in the current campaign. This is despite the various injuries to his team-mates having given him the starting spot seven out of eight games. His only joy? The goal against Lecce in the Coppa Italia.
Max wants more
Goals aside, Gimenez’s recent performances before Friday’s match against Pisa had been encouraging. Santiago fought hard against Juventus, earning a penalty that Pulisic missed, then provided a boost as a substitute against Fiorentina, earning another penalty, this time converted by Leao.
Against Pisa, however, Santi once again failed terribly, so much so that Massimiliano Allegri repeatedly shouted at him during the 76 minutes he was on the pitch. The coach went hoarse trying to liven up his centre-forward, shouting: “Santiiii, wake up! Are you sleeping?”
He’s now also considering his attacking options ahead of tomorrow’s match against Atalanta. Pulisic is still unavailable, but Nkunku is now also a candidate as Leao’s partner, or a more conservative solution could be chosen: Saelemaekers behind Leao – replicating the system seen against Fiorentina.
In today’s training session, Allegri will assess whether the Frenchman – recovering from a big toe issue – is finally ready for his first league start. Above all, he must decide whether Gimenez is struggling or is instead deserving of yet another chance.
Max’s squad also includes Loftus-Cheek, who should return fit and ready for action in Bergamo. The Englishman is another option to use alongside or behind the striker.
The only nine
Gimenez remains the only true centre-forward in Milan’s squad at least until January. Nkunku and Leao can adapt, but they aren’t strikers nature. It’s natural, then, that Allegri will be forced to keep the Mexican in the fold.
Atalanta is just the next stop. On the other bench, Juric will be able to field one of Scamacca and Krstovic and keep the other of the two as a substitute. Speaking of which, how are the other Serie A strikers doing?
Among the regular starters, the only one without a goal is Lecce’s Stulic, but Camarda has scored. Just as at Genoa, Colombo has now lost his place to the young Ekhator, who scored against Napoli.
It’s a similar story at Como, where Fabregas alternates between Morata – also looking for his first goal- and Douvikas, who has already scored. Essentially, the starting centre-forwards still without a goal can be counted on one hand. And, in terms of minutes played, Gimenez is clearly the frontrunner.
What does the future hold?
It’s logical to expect Santiago to do more, but it’s no secret that the Mexican came close to leaving Milan in the final days of the summer transfer window. In short, the doubts were likely there even before now.
It’s up to Gimenez himself to dispel them, as he’s always been exemplary in terms of commitment. However, that’s not enough for Milan. They need goals worthy of the No.7 shirt, previously worn by a certain Andriy Shevchenko.
The Ukrainian reached 175 appearances for Milan. Santi is expected to do far less, but getting rid of that pesky zero in the goals column would ease the burden on El Bebote’s shoulders.
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