Zlatan Ibrahimović's communications with Massimiliano Allegri regarding tactical and technical matters inside Milan's locker room began after the 1-1 draw at home against Como, but the tension was already present even before Milan's 2-1 victory over Pisa in the final moments on February 13, thanks to a goal from Luka Modrić.
The start of the disagreements dates back to early February, when Ibrahimović and Forlan were considering the current squad sufficient to compete, while Allegri was extremely angry after the January transfer window because he had been waiting for reinforcements that never arrived.
The heated discussions gradually led Ibrahimović to inform some of the players he communicates with by phone about the true situation concerning them, as well as Allegri's plans for the future.
After the Milan vs. Como 1-1 match, these were Milan's results:
Milan vs. Parma 0-1
Cremonese vs. Milan 0-2 (Pavlović and Leão)
Milan vs. Inter 1-0 (Estupiñán)
Lazio vs. Milan 1-0
Milan vs. Torino 3-2 (Pavlović, Rabiot, and Fofana)
Napoli vs. Milan 1-0
Milan vs. Udinese 0-3
Verona vs. Milan 0-1 (Rabiot)
Milan vs. Juventus 0-0
Sassuolo vs. Milan 2-0
Milan vs. Atalanta 2-3 (Pavlović and Nkunku)
Genoa vs. Milan 1-2 (Nkunku and Aït-Nouri)
Milan vs. Cagliari 1-2 (Salemakers)
13 matches:
5 wins, one draw, and 7 losses.
Just 16 points out of 39.
Milan scored only 12 goals, of which:
3 goals through Strahinja Pavlović, one of Allegri's staunchest supporters within the team
Two goals through Adrien Rabiot, who is considered a symbol of "Allegri-ism" inside the locker room
Two goals through Christopher Nkunku
One goal through Alexis Salemakers
One goal through Aït-Nouri
That means 9 out of 12 goals came from players who support Allegri, while Rafael Leão, Yusuf Fofana, and Pervis Estupiñán—who are considered part of the opposition to the coach and participants in Ibrahimović's communications—scored only the remaining three goals.
And most shockingly, these players, along with Christian Pulisic, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Fikayo Tomori, Ritchie, and Jiménez, were the ones with disastrous levels and behaviors.
Therefore, there is no doubt about the reason for the collapse of a team that was steadily heading toward the Champions League, and was even competing for the league at one point, before collapsing in a shameful manner amid what resembles internal sabotage.