Marcel Desailly praised the work of the Milan management in putting together their current squad and assessed a few players, without sparing jibes, in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“I like their mix of youngsters and veterans. Winning the Scudetto is nice but consolidating yourself is harder. We are recreating the same foundation as in the 80’s and the 90’s, when it was the best club in the world. It’s alive again.”
“Mike Maignan isn’t one of the top five goalkeepers in the world right now because he’s hurt. But he’s super important and can improve a lot. Theo Hernandez can be the best fullback, because he’s a chameleon and changes his role within the team.”
Desailly lauded the pairing between Stefano Pioli and Olivier Giroud but pumped the brakes on Rafael Leao despite his success with Milan.
“The style of the coach is perfectly suited with the striker’s skill-set. They needed somebody with experience that could come through in key moments. It’s a perfect match. Instead, I think the Portuguese forward was anointed as a star too early. He has enormous potential but he doesn’t seem fierce to me. Thierry Henry and Zinedine Zidane wanted to be the best, while I ask him to strengthen his character. The comparisons don’t work right now.”
The iconic defender dished on Serie A.
“I like Napoli’s energy but I doubt they can hold on mentally until the end. Juventus and Milan can exploit that. Sandro Tonali and Federico Chiesa, who’s similar to his father, are among my favorite players. Dusan Vlahovic has the mentality, feet and talent to be the Marco Van Basten of his era, but I wonder whether he has the right intensity.”
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