Teacher and student to opponents: Allegri faces Fabregas after Coverciano lecture

Tonight’s game between Como and AC Milan has an added sub-plot: the first meeting between Cesc Fabregas and Massimiliano Allegri.

It may be their first encounter in a game, but – as MilanPress points out – it won’t be the first meeting between Fabregas and Allegri since the former Spanish midfielder retired from playing and began his coaching career.

A few months ago, in June to be precise, Allegri – who had recently been hired by the Rossoneri – held a lecture at Coverciano to the UEFA Pro Master students. Among them was Fabregas, who he will face for the first time this evening.

Fabio Pisacane was another on the course, the Cagliari coach who he faced a few weeks ago. His long-time collaborator Marco Landucci, the former Napoli midfielder Marek Hamsik, the former AC Milan defender Salvatore Bocchetti and also Cristian Chivu’s assistant at Inter, Aleksandar Kolarov were als present.

“I didn’t come to teach anything, but to tell you about my professional experiences,” Allegri began the lesson. “You have to be good at getting players to perform to the best of their ability.” And who knows if Fabregas has learned his lesson and is ready, as early as this evening, to trip up his ‘professor’.

In his press conference, Fabregas spoke about facing Max: “On the bench, it’s the Champions League against Serie D. Allegri has shown everything as a coach, I’ve done nothing. There’s no comparison. We need to put in a good performance, maintain consistency in our game, and continue to grow.”