Milan Circle
"Once again, we suffered a misjudgment and can't always arrange for a novice to blow the top team's game!" After AC Milan drew 1-1 at home with Udinese, Rossoneri superintendent Maldini said this to the camera. Although Milan's performance in San Siro was not dominant, although Inter Milan, who subsequently appeared, remained "humble", and although Pioli's side was still in the title-contending group so far, some facts are obvious and cannot and should not be diverted from the good or bad performances on the pitch.
Again and again, again and again?
But any fan who knows Maldini knows that the red and black legend is known for being gentle and elegant both as a player and into the management of the club, and since returning to Milan in 2019, he has hardly directly questioned the referee. The reason why he was "so out of shape" after the battle with Udinese was not only because the referee's misjudgment caused the team to lose two important points on the road to the championship, but also because such a situation has happened more than once this season.
Leaving aside the controversy between the Champions League and Atletico, and without exploring some of the minor controversies in the league, Milan has encountered three major controversies in the past 10 rounds of Serie A.
The first was a strong dialogue with Napoli in the 18th round, when Casey scored a crucial goal in the last minute, and the referee unbelievably judged that Olivier Giroud, who had fallen to the ground and was pressed by the defender, was "involved in the attack", which eventually led to a 1-0 defeat for Milan.
The second was the 22nd round against Spezia, where Messias scored in a favorable offensive situation, but the referee awarded a set-piece, and milan was killed by the opponent's backhand, with 3 points turned to 0 points.
The third time was the night just past, when Udinese "tenaciously" equalized in san Siro, but through a slow-motion replay, Udoky was suspected of handball before scoring.
On average, 5 rounds of a serious controversy at their own home, and each time may directly affect the course of the season, so who can withstand such "care"? Think about it, if Milan had to compete with Napoli at the end of the season, the first controversy would have led directly to a goal and three-point gap between each other's records, and the sum of the three penalties would have added up to a total of six points inside and outside Milan – an "unbearable weight" for any team vying for the title.
The penalty against Udinese was extremely bizarre, although many Milan fans did not react to the possible handball at the first time, but the goal scorer Udoki admitted after the game that he did not celebrate the referee's decision for the first time, VAR seems to have been entangled, but the referee Marchetti, who has only played 7 Serie A matches before, is still quite confident to point to the central line. Faced with this situation, Maldini had a reason to erupt.
In fact, in the two previous major controversies, Milan has been extremely generous, and the red and black generals have even collectively comforted the referee Serra, who realized his mistake and cried. Unfortunately, repeated concessions have not made the situation better, as the totem and management of the club, Maldini needs to make his attitude and position clear. After all, the repeated controversies could ruin Milan's entire season.
We know that Milan have no shortage of players with personalities, but the representatives of the "talk" level are relatively gentle, the director Maldini is known for his elegance, the coach Pioli is the image of the old and good man, and the captain Romagnoli is also very good-tempered, if you always turn a blind eye to controversy, it will only make the future situation more embarrassing. To make an inappropriate analogy, it's like a struggle in a relationship, where taking a stand may not bring immediate benefits, but it may let the other party know your bottom line in making decisions, so that you are no longer sloppy.
The controversial penalty may not be deliberately aimed at Milan, and Serie A may not be as faint as the fans accuse in outrage, but Milan's losses are real. The past can no longer be changed, the young team can only look forward, at the key point when the season is about to start sprinting, Milan need to take a stand, must also take a stand.
An "acceptable" draw
Whenever Milan draws due to controversial penalties, there will always be such a voice: if they play well, how can a penalty affect the game?
Such remarks are somewhat stealing the concept, because the team's play and the final result need to be discussed separately. For example, even if the "Xueba" (let's be compared to Milan) is not in good shape, he can be admitted to a double first-class university, and the result is that it becomes two books because of the mistake in the grading, can this be the same?
The match against Udinese is a typical example, Milan's performance is not satisfactory, but overall it has not deviated too far from expectations. You know, Udinese's rough style of play is not adapted to Milan, many years ago De Paul became the object of accusations of red and black fans because of frequent big moves, this battle of San Siro, Joffe's team will be fierce shoveling to the extreme, so we see Leo fall to the ground again and again, Special Olympics has been repeatedly violated, it is not easy to get healthy.
In the case of two games less than 3 points ahead of the relegation zone, Udinese's strategy is to score 1 point in the basic set, take 3 points is to earn, the field also showed a "barefoot is not afraid to wear shoes" posture, in addition to the defensive end of the fierce grab, the offensive end rely on Beto and Milan veteran Deulofeu to harass, it can be said that it is very targeted. In contrast, Milan are in a trough of form, although not as "show lower bound" as when they were drawn with the deputy squad leader, but they have not completely eaten the performance of their opponents.
The opponent's fierce fighting style restraint, the referee's constant blowing of the tone of the game, and Udinese's constantly disrupted rhythm in the second half all made the San Siro game fragmented, and Pioli accidentally lost the ball when he was looking for change, making the strategic deployment also passive. Despite the controversial penalty, it is understandable to blow off Leo's goal on the scale of the referee, and according to the opportunities obtained by both sides, a draw is relatively fair.
(Post-match statistics against Udinese)
Compared with the loss to Spezia and the draw with Salernitana, the draw with Udinese was relatively the most acceptable draw, and it turned out that Milan's form needed to be adjusted, and the personnel reserves could not effectively deal with opponents of all styles in Serie A - Díaz is a stark example, the physically disadvantaged he was unable to play under the defensive characteristics of the black chicken players, resulting in the team's attack being blocked.
Milan fans must have been upset by losing four points in two league rounds, but in the process, people should also realize that this team is still some distance away from words like "perfect" and "top". Controversial penalties have changed a lot, and it is the difficult process of the game that is really worth reflecting on.
A crossroads of the season
Failing to score six points on Salernitana and Udinese left Milan in the middle of the March schedule. A week later, the Rossoneri will host the Milan derby in the semi-finals of the Italian Cup, returning to the league followed by the battle of King's Hill against Napoli. Milan currently have only a domestic mandate, and two games in early March have the potential to set the tone for the team's direction throughout the season.
With one more game at the top of the table and a 2-point lead, it is impossible to say that Milan do not have the heart to compete for the title, but the team should also pay attention to potential "chasers". Milan now have 57 points ahead of Fifth-placed Atalanta by 13 points, and considering the most perfect situation for real blue and black, Pioli's team only has two and a half rounds of advantage, and the Champions League qualification looks stable, but it is not a ten-to-nine.
Fortunately, in this chaotic world of Serie A, everyone has a difficult experience, who can think that Inter, who looked like a broken bamboo two months ago, will suffer a wave of league 4 rounds of no winless, who can think that Milan will lose 4 points in the downstream team and still be at the top of the list. As the league draws to a close, the mistakes made will be further amplified, and it is not of much use to focus on the opponent, and Milan must first ensure that they are good at themselves. With 11 rounds left in Serie A, who wouldn't imagine a championship? But the most important thing is always to play the next game. Forza Milan！