The Rumour Commode XXIV: The Reality Era Continues

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Alec

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Okay okay, let's not make this gay brother.
 

mato

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Im forgetting already, too many. swapping was my sarcasm cause kessie gets a lot of shit here recently, but someone said vecino and brozovic were light years ahead of our mid and others confirmed it, that i remember, tough to track the names already :lol:

Could be me. But to be honest, Kessie is the only bright spark in our midfield. Entire Inter midfield line is better than our next best midfielder (Biglia).
 

necromancer

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Could be me. But to be honest, Kessie is the only bright spark in our midfield. Entire Inter midfield line is better than our next best midfielder (Biglia).

:lol: The Broz, commode's favourite mediocre midfielder.
 

vidarth

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Brozovic was actually good at the world cup.

At inter he's always been average af.
 

Alec

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Praising Brozovic... sure whatever, he has bright spots but praising 25 mil Vecino? :lol: Baselli tier midfielder
 

IL Diavolo 3

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Man of the hour: How Romagnoli became AC Milan's unexpected captain.

There were plenty of reasons to leave AC Milan in the summer. Majority shareholder Yonghong Li was about to default on his high-interest loan, and a ban from European competition loomed large. Meanwhile, high-profile center-back Leonardo Bonucci, signed only a year before, privately plotted his return to Juventus.

But something happened amidst all the doom and gloom. Alessio Romagnoli decided not only to stay, but to double down on his commitment to the Rossoneri, renewing his contract until 2022.

"He didn't bat an eyelid in tying himself to Milan for such an important period of time," then-sporting director Massimiliano Mirabelli said in June. "He didn't listen to any of the sirens, even though there were a lot of them."

At just 23, Romagnoli had suddenly become the pillar of Milan's future. Little did he know three years prior he would become captain as well.

The bet that paid off

One of the final signings of the Silvio Berlusconi era, Romagnoli arrived in 2015 from Roma for €25 million. It was at the time the second-highest fee Milan had paid for a defender, behind Alessandro Nesta.

Critics saw the deal as expensive and risky. Romagnoli had played only one full season in Serie A - on loan at Sampdoria - and offered no short-term fixes. But Sinisa Mihajlovic had a different point of view. He had coached Romagnoli at the Luigi Ferraris, and made it a priority to recruit the player when he was appointed Milan manager.

Due to a lack of options at center-back, Romagnoli was chucked straight into the lineup. There were growing pains and mistakes, notably a sending off in his first month at the club. He had trouble marking attackers and detecting runs in behind. But without someone like Paolo Maldini by his side, or any kind of totem pole, Romagnoli had to learn on the go. He had no choice.


"I just wanted to show that I was worth the money," he told Corriere della Sera.

That steadfast determination gave Romagnoli the backbone to withstand waves of criticism and turbulence. He lost an ally in Mihajlovic when the Serbian was fired midway through the 2015-16 season, and lived through dramatic personnel changes in the years that followed. Developing an understanding was difficult knowing that managers, as well as teammates, would last little more than a season.

But if the results weren't coming, Romagnoli was gaining valuable experience.

Lessons from Bonucci

After replacing Vincenzo Montella as manager in November 2018, Gennaro Gattuso set out to correct Milan's calamitous defense. Neither Bonucci nor Romagnoli looked comfortable in Montella's back three, lacking the shape and structure that a defensive formation requires.

Gattuso reverted to a back four, and Bonucci, after struggling in the first months of the season, found his footing. He made crucial clearances, kick-started plays, and executed a more attentive overall game. Bonucci's return to form benefitted Romagnoli more than anyone else, giving the youngster a reference point he'd never had before.


"Romagnoli has been a true professional in the last nine months," Gattuso told reporters, according to Milannews.it. "The arrival of Bonucci did him well because he left something in him, teaching him how to work. The fact he had Leonardo at his side helped him a lot."

Despite his short-lived stay at the San Siro, Bonucci had an effect on Romagnoli, showing him the merits of playing out from the back and ways to deal with pressure. Romagnoli also developed a finer sense of positioning beside Bonucci, winning tackles cleanly and aerial duels regularly. It was a necessary, if brief, education.

But it wasn't as if Bonucci turned Romagnoli into the secure defender he is today. He always had the technical skills to clear the lines. Bonucci's presence simply allowed Romagnoli to tap into that skill set and express himself with more confidence.

What Bonucci didn't have, however, was Romagnoli's sense of commitment.

The perfect choice

He's been indebted to Milan since they signed him three years ago, admitting early on in his career that Milan saved him from spending a year on Roma's bench. They believed in him when Roma didn't.

And he believed in Milan when it was acceptable - even fashionable - to abandon ship.

So when it was time to name a new captain, Romagnoli was the "perfect choice," according to La Gazzetta dello Sport. It was clear to Gattuso that the players felt Romagnoli was ready to lead.

It wasn't that he was the loudest player or the highest-paid. But he was the most respected. He won the dressing room through hard work and dedication.


"Romagnoli was the only light at the end of the tunnel in the two most delicate months of (the) Rossoneri's summer, and fans love him a lot," Milan said in a statement shortly after his renewal. "The reputation he enjoys in the locker room is directly proportional. Alessio is sober, serious, and disenchanted outside the pitch, just like Nesta. It is not a technical comparison, but a personality one."

Romagnoli is by far the most popular and deserving of Milan's captains in recent years. Considering the likes of Sulley Muntari, Philippe Mexes, and Riccardo Montolivo wore the armband - each unfit for the part - a worthy candidate was long overdue.

No one is holding Romagnoli's age against him. It doesn't matter that he's the second-youngest player in this season's Serie A to captain a side. What matters is the way he handles himself on and off the pitch, and it's more than exemplary.

The new role requires some sacrifices - he has to do far more interviews - but he's overcome his shyness for the good of the team. He's also measured and composed in the face of referees, putting his arms out to protect angry teammates from bookings.


It's the little things that prove Romagnoli is the man for the job. And if there were any doubts, they were put to rest when he scored twice in second-half stoppage time to deliver late victories.

His winner against Genoa could be considered fortunate, but the heroics at Udinese on Nov. 4 was the stuff of legend. As the clock counted off the final minutes of a seemingly inevitable 0-0 draw, Romagnoli abandoned his defensive post in search of a breakthrough. He saw a chance to dispossess Udinese counterpart Nicholas Opoku and did so with the kind of challenge that would make Nesta proud. He then joined the attack and laced a powerful shot to spark jubilation. It was that bit of extra effort, that undying belief, that powered Milan to victory.

"When a player gives everything on the pitch, he becomes a favorite of the public, and Romagnoli has become one in recent months," wrote Antonio Vitiello of Milannews.it. "It's not just the goals, it's the continuous reaction, the continuous desire to improve."
 

LocalHero80

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i dont know why i keep forgetting we had ocampos. my brain probably refused to register that fact. everytime i read about him I'm puzzled we had such player.
 

Alec

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i dont know why i keep forgetting we had ocampos. my brain probably refused to register that fact. everytime i read about him I'm puzzled we had such player.

Men in Black keep zapping your brain each time you remember him because he is irrefutable proof of alien life on earth.
 

Samaldinho

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Honestly, I don't hold anything against Bonucci. His family moved back to Turin in January. I think he moved because of his kid. I love Milan with all my heart. But he pushed for a move for his kid. I respect that.
 

IL Diavolo 3

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Honestly, I don't hold anything against Bonucci. His family moved back to Turin in January. I think he moved because of his kid. I love Milan with all my heart. But he pushed for a move for his kid. I respect that.



His family never moved to Milan iirc. He was living in a hotel.
 

Samaldinho

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I hate the new Emirates logo. It looks like the logo for a Championship team. A relegation threatened Championship team.
 

Samaldinho

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Man, I wish we had kept SES. I think he is slowly working his way into becoming a more consistent player. Would love his pace down our left, too.
 

LocalHero80

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Honestly, I don't hold anything against Bonucci. His family moved back to Turin in January. I think he moved because of his kid. I love Milan with all my heart. But he pushed for a move for his kid. I respect that.

I dont hold anything against him either other than his multiple fuckups, but this aint true. It wasnt cause of his kid, if it was he wouldnt have moved in first place. He just wanted to punish them and then ran back like a crybaby. Thats all
 

Buske

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i dont know why i keep forgetting we had ocampos. my brain probably refused to register that fact. everytime i read about him I'm puzzled we had such player.

Unfortulately, i cant forget that legend. One of the most useless players we ever had
 

MarioReality

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Real Betis up 0-2 at the Camp Nou, but rnb out here acting like we should have wiped the floor with them in 2 straight matches.

ok
 

Samaldinho

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I dont hold anything against him either other than his multiple fuckups, but this aint true. It wasnt cause of his kid, if it was he wouldnt have moved in first place. He just wanted to punish them and then ran back like a crybaby. Thats all

If it wasn't about his kid, he would have left Italy. I think he thought Milan-Turin was close enough.

I'm sure his doctors, his friends, and support system are all in Turin. I think that's a big reason he went back, honestly. Juve needed him, and I'm sure he couldn't handle the pressure of a re-build.

But I also think that his kid was the biggest rationale. It's why I don't think there is this tremendous bitterness in the squad.

When Gattuso says: "I can only speak highly of Leo, then in life there are many situations and it's difficult to judge. I tried to convince him to stay, but he has kids, his private life, and this is all to be respected."

So that's why I'm not mad at him. Plus, he wasn't amazing here. He might have taught Romagnoli a lot, but he didn't play like he can. Plus, he gave us the leverage to get Caldara and Higuain. Caldara I hope will return from injury and do well, and Higuain has really done well for us. So, win-win.
 

LocalHero80

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If it wasn't about his kid, he would have left Italy. I think he thought Milan-Turin was close enough.

I'm sure his doctors, his friends, and support system are all in Turin. I think that's a big reason he went back, honestly. Juve needed him, and I'm sure he couldn't handle the pressure of a re-build.

But I also think that his kid was the biggest rationale. It's why I don't think there is this tremendous bitterness in the squad.

When Gattuso says: "I can only speak highly of Leo, then in life there are many situations and it's difficult to judge. I tried to convince him to stay, but he has kids, his private life, and this is all to be respected."

So that's why I'm not mad at him. Plus, he wasn't amazing here. He might have taught Romagnoli a lot, but he didn't play like he can. Plus, he gave us the leverage to get Caldara and Higuain. Caldara I hope will return from injury and do well, and Higuain has really done well for us. So, win-win.

if it wasnt for his kid he would leave italy. does it mean he went back cause of his kid? Also he never for once said that he's going back cause of family and other stuff. You think he'd ever leave if we didnt have that China case and didnt have a horrible season? Come on :lol: I dont care what Gattuso says really, it's not like he was gonna shit on Leo. Somehow he didnt have kids or private life when he decided to join us and was #hungryasever. He has always been a bitch really. I have no hard feelings for him, he was never a Milanista, so he can do whatever he wants. I'm sure Juve fans have more reasons to hate him than we do.
 
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MarioReality

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why are we discussing a player who left here months ago, and led to us improving dramatically?
 

milanista_

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Let's hope that Saussolo and Lazio ends with a draw. That would be great for us. Which means it won't hurt us so much if we lose tonight. The next game against Lazio is the more important one to win for us.
 

LocalHero80

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Let's hope that Saussolo and Lazio ends with a draw. That would be great for us. Which means it won't hurt us so much if we lose tonight. The next game against Lazio is the more important one to win for us.

dont tell me you consider Sassuolo our rival :D we need them to win, fullstop.
 

MarioReality

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sassuolo won't lose to lazio.

and we're beating lazio.

i dunno, do with that what you will
 

LocalHero80

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lol betis raping barca, and we were like "is this barca we're playing" :D
 
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