AC Milan director Paolo Maldini may well have pre-empted Stefano Pioli’s exact thoughts prior to the derby win over Inter, a report has claimed.
MilanNews writes how before the game during his interview with DAZN, Maldini was almost prophetic when asked about the decision to field Franck Kessie as the advanced midfielder: “The coach names the starting line-up also thinking about how to determine with the changes. If you put those who can change the game immediately then you find yourself without solutions.”
Pioli has never hidden that his attempt is to build a game principle through the 4-2-3-1 system which is now a trademark of the Emilian coach, but the Rossoneri’s attitude on the pitch is actually ‘chameleonic’ because the positions of many players are interchangeable, as are the attacking manoeuvres.
The most recent and striking example came on Saturday evening when at 1-0 to Inter, Pioli replaced Kessie with Brahim Diaz. The Ivorian started in the No.10 role to try and disrupt Brozovic as much as possible, but he had a poor performance and showed that it is not his natural role, whereas the actual No.10 came on and showed the right characteristics at the right time.
He took a position between Nerazzurri lines and they completely panicked. Giroud’s first goal came from a recovery in the opponent’s half, another trademark of Pioli, while the second came from a familiar mechanism whereby the wingers stay wide to facilitate the full-backs pushing up and inside, causing disorganisation.
There is no stroke of luck behind this, rather the difference was made by the attention to detail of the two coaches and the mental strength of the teams, with the Rossoneri prevailing thanks to Pioli’s brave choices and intuitions.
READ MORE: Inzaghi’s plan and Pioli seizing the moment – Tactical analysis of Milan’s win against Inter
