After a woeful stretch, Milan found their footing with three straight one-nil victories against Torino, Tottenham, and Monza. The switch to a three-man defense contributed to solving their problems in the back.
Per Calciomercato, on top of keeping three consecutive clean sheets, the Rossoneri conceded significantly fewer chances in the past three fixtures compared to the previous ones versus Lazio, Sassuolo, and Inter. That was especially the case in the first 60 minutes. Instead, the numbers were similar in later stages when the opponents tried to lay siege to equalize.
Malick Thiaw has been their latest revelation, and he wasn’t getting minutes with their usual system. Fikayo Tomori looked great in the encounter with the Brianzoli in his return from a hip injury. Pierre Kalulu is in his element as a braccetto given his traits.
On the other hand, Milan had less possession than their adversaries for the third game in a row. It hadn’t happened since 2016/2017 when Vincenzo Montella was at the helm. Stefano Pioli had hinted at a seismic shift in their strategy.
“What worked in the last two years and allowed us to play great football no longer functions.”
Per Corriere della Sera, the boss had fecund discussions with Paolo Maldini before massively tilting the formation. While it didn’t pan out in the Derby, where they were too conservative with a pure 3-5-2, he inserted one more attacker afterward.
According to TuttoSport, the modification was necessary to regain confidence, especially defensively, but it’s temporary. The Milan coach fully plans to return to a four-man rearguard, especially once Mike Maignan is back. The gaffer is widely expected to win the prestigious Panchina d’Oro award today.
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