Week 4: Cagliari vs. AC Milan 16/09/2018 20:30 CET

CALCIOMERCATO
In the press conference ahead of the game against Cagliari Gennaro Gattuso spoke about his side this season.

“We are playing against a very difficult opponent in a very difficult arena.
*“They can cause us a lot of problems, so we must improve the things that we still don’t do to our best. It takes time to try out new tactics and players, and if you don’t test them out in training, it becomes improvisation on the field.

“Leonardo Pavoletti is one of the best in Serie A when it comes to headers, so we mustn’t give them the opportunity to put crosses in. We’ve got to soak up the pressure when the situation calls for it.

*“We could play with a False 9 too, I am not worried. We made choices on the transfer market to fit in also with Financial Fair Play. Higuain allows the wingers to come in and take part in the attack.

“In last week’s friendly, Higuain looked like the angriest man in the world. When he struggles to score goals, he becomes really irritated and that shows what a champion he really is. He’s a player who is giving his all and sends an important signal to his teammates.

*“I make my decisions based on what I see in training. The tactical movements have to be perfect in order to play the way I want. You in the media are in fact hurting Caldara, as you can’t destroy a player after one game. He is coming from a very different level and it’s not right to throw him in the garbage dispenser. The club has faith in Caldara and I have no problem giving him time to develop.

*“When it comes to Biglia’s role we have Jose Mauri and Andrea Bertolacci. I think it’ll take a while to get Bakayoko up to speed as a playmaker. When you come from a completely different league, you need to learn the cross-field passing, to double up on marking and not to just chase the ball. If you’re not organised, the whole team can struggle.

“He can do it with some hard work, although he needs to learn Italian faster, as it’s not helping him in the locker room.”

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truant said:

Mauri is still in the reckoning? For regista? I am shocked. Guess this is the end of the road for Montolivo.

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Youth said:

What do we expect, we have only Mauri and Bertolacci there. Monto seems non-existent right now.

Bakayoko playmaker? What does this mean actually? Does Gattuso means 'regista', the position Biglia plays in?

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Az. said:

Seriously no Caldara again? Against fucking Cagliari? I understand easing him in, but let the lad start against shite opposition.

He is not some primavera player, the guy played for a EL contender, and played well.

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Az. said:

Seriously no Caldara again? Against fucking Cagliari? I understand easing him in, but let the lad start against shite opposition.

He is not some primavera player, the guy played for a EL contender, and played well.

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jawz10 said:

Not completely true, but not false either. I think the point the video is pointing out is how Gattuso has put the players on the pitch, the roles he has them fulfilling, and what expectations he has for them.

Hakan is being played out wide, but is fulfilling the role of a creator while helping Bonaventura, and is expected to press with Higuain. Thats Gattuso- as in a different team Hakan could be a central midfielder or an attacking midfielder with no defensive responsibility. The results have been obvious too, in H2H matches vs top6 rivals we've been really good.

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Thenebra said:

Whats so hard to understand? He will not start until he adapts to a 4 man def. Gattuso said this numerous times. Caldara also confirmed it.
Think el we will see him in action.

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Az. said:

Did he never play in a 4 man defence ever, how the fuck did he became a footballer? Gimy a break, Caldara ofc is saying that cause he doesn't want to get Gattuso angry.

Anyway can't wait for the game, hope we smash them, and Higuain gets on the score sheet.

We need him to break the duck, and start scoring week in week out for us.

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Az. said:

Seriously no Caldara again? Against fucking Cagliari? I understand easing him in, but let the lad start against shite opposition.

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Youth said:

Any tactical analysis why we dropped considerably our performance in the second half against Roma (from the point of view of Milan)?

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Az. said:

Seriously no Caldara again? Against fucking Cagliari? I understand easing him in, but let the lad start against shite opposition.

He is not some primavera player, the guy played for a EL contender, and played well.

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Ronin said:

There was a link to a good analysis on twitter in the Roma match thread. Roma is not an amateur team and Di Francesco is a good coach. They have adjusted really well in the 2nd half, which caught us off-guard. Then, Rino took his measures and we ended up dominating the end of the game.

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Youth said:

That is true. I already have watched the videos from twitter (very good one) but am still not satisfied by the solution we could have done to prevent such drastic change especially we looked shaky defensively (in the second half). Hopefully Gattuso finds the formula (I am pretty sure he will just like how the change occured from Napoli to Roma).

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Youth said:

That is true. I already have watched the videos from twitter (very good one) but am still not satisfied by the solution we could have done to prevent such drastic change especially we looked shaky defensively (in the second half). Hopefully Gattuso finds the formula (I am pretty sure he will just like how the change occured from Napoli to Roma).

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Az. said:

Seriously no Caldara again? Against fucking Cagliari? I understand easing him in, but let the lad start against shite opposition.

He is not some primavera player, the guy played for a EL contender, and played well.

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“We are going to face a difficult team on a difficult field. With the international break and players not being present difficulties can arise. Cagliari can cause a lot of trouble and we must continue improving the things we are still not best at,” Gattuso told*Milannews.it.

“Donnarumma? He needs to find continuity. I expect a lot from him. With Reina he has a great professional behind him. He can make big improvements and this year there was a change in methodology. He has to work and listen to what the papers write as little as possible.

“I do not like compliments a lot. We have to keep the level of quality for ninety minutes. We played a great match against Roma, but we risked even to lose it. Tomorrow we expect a difficult game.

“The biggest difficulty on my part is choosing who to play. Everyone is training with great professionalism. I am not worried about the many games in the coming weeks. We have many players who can give us a hand.

“Higuain? In the friendly last week he looked like the angriest man in the world. When he does not score, he gets annoyed, which makes you understand what a champion he is. He is consistent. This is an important signal for the whole group.

“The leaders? Romagnoli has grown a lot. Reina is an incredible leader, he drags everyone on his side. When one wants to be the leader, he must be consistent. The leader must be impeccable. Both Higuain and Reina are giving us a great hand. It is thanks to them as well that the atmosphere in the locker room is good.

“Caldara? You [journalists] are only hurting him. You cannot destroy a player after one game. He comes from a different football culture and it is not right to throw him in the blender. The club has confidence in Caldara and he can give us a big hand.

“The attack? We can also play with a false nine, I am not worried. We had a good market, also taking into account the FFP problems. I am sorry for Patrick [Cutrone]. I hope and think it is not a serious problem. We hope he recovers for Thursday.

“Barella? With the old ownership we talked about him. He is a player with great room for improvement, an important prospect. I like how he plays the role.

“The January market? We are not thinking about it now. Jose Mauri and Bertolacci can be the vice-Biglia. Mauri did well on the US tour and we are happy with what we have.

“Bakayoko as a regista? We have to work. It is not that he cannot play there, but he needs to get used to the league and system. He is working hard. He has to learn the language and then he will improve,” Gattuso concluded.

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