Milan have been brought down to earth by Liverpool, who came back from behind to win 3-1 at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza in their opening match of the new expanded Champions League.
All the progress Fonseca’s side had shown over the weekend, in their 4-0 thumping of Venezia, was quickly wiped out by yet another worrying performance, especially for the sense of helplessness that seems to pervade Milan players as the visitors inflicted them one blow after another.
Here are three talking points from the Rossoneri’s 3-1 defeat at the hands of Liverpool.
Midfield is still a riddle for Fonseca
Coach Paulo Fonseca opted to repeat the midfield experiment, which worked well against Venezia, and fielded Tijjani Reijnders in the trequartista role, behind lone striker Alvaro Morata.
While the Dutch international’s potential is clearly enhanced when he plays closer to the opponents’ goal, questions are being raised about the decision to use Youssouf Fofana and Ruben Loftus-Cheek as deep-lying midfielders.
As much as the duo’s physicality can protect their defence, both players struggle when required to handle possession in tight spaces, which can be particularly detrimental when Milan face heavy pressure from their opponents. This was exactly the case against Liverpool, meaning the Rossoneri could not keep the ball and breathe, allowing the visitors to mount repeated attacking waves.
As a result, Reijnders started to come deeper in the second half in an attempt to help his team manage the ball, which ended up draining his energy. It is up to Fonseca now to find a way to get the best out of his midfielders’ qualities rather than assigning them tasks that hinder their potential.
Do Milan have a character issue?
Milan’s first win of the season against Venezia also marked the only time the Rossoneri kept a clean sheet.
While they’ve scored in each game played so far, the biggest issues seem to emerge every time they concede a goal, an event that seems to undermine an already weak confidence.
The Rossoneri looked stunned and failed to mount a reaction when Torino took the lead at San Siro on their Serie A debut in August and it took them more than one hour to bounce back after Parma’s early opener. Despite going ahead against Lazio on Matchday 3, they suddenly crumbled when the Biancocelesti increased their pressure and found an equaliser at the Stadio Olimpico before scoring a second in quick succession.
It was just more of the same against Liverpool. Milan’s exciting start was wiped out in the blink of an eye when Konaté headed home the equaliser for the visitors. All the hunger and intensity that had marked the hosts’ opening 15 minutes suddenly disappeared.
Even before fixing their defensive issues, coach Paulo Fonseca should work on his side’s inability to react to adversities, which is key if they want to play their football for more than 20 minutes, as the coach himself urged his players to do after their latest Champions League defeat.
Christian Pulisic is shining bright again
A few games into the new campaign, we can already say that Christian Pulisic was far from being a one-season wonder.
After watching the American score 15 goals from 50 matches across all competitions last season, many wondered if the former Chelsea player could repeat himself in his second year in Italy.
It is fair to say that Pulisic didn’t shy away from facing such pressure and started the season brightly, scoring twice in Milan’s first four Serie A games before also finding the net in their European debut against Liverpool.
More than that, he provides his side with such a wide array of solutions that he currently looks irreplaceable for the Rossoneri – his dribbling skills, shooting from long range, and ability to come inside and combine in tight spaces constantly make him one of the main threats to face for Milan’s opponents.
As of now, the 26-year-old looks much more like an offensive reference than his counterpart Rafa Leao, which Fonseca must consider when considering his team’s points of strength.