Podcast: Still Looking for Answers

The constant turns and twists of Milan’s fate can be difficult to keep up with. We look to every game with hope in our hearts and are rarely rewarded. Off the pitch there is even more craziness, and if you are truly looking for answers, social media is definitely not the place. But as fans, if we stick together and wade through the rumors and critics and cling to reality, we can perhaps find some answers together.

Lost but not for not trying

The stars aligned so that I could have Susy on the podcast to chat about all things Milan. Follow her on Twitter @SusyCampanale and also follow @footballitalia, where she is the brilliant editor for the amazing English speaking Serie A site. A little known fact is that despite her neutrality on the site, she is a devout Milanista. So we chatted about:

• News of the Week:  Hall of Fame, retirement, Milan birthday gift, Montella’s new job

• Season Update: Serie A,Europa League, and Coppa Italia update

• Donnarumma Saga 2.0: douchebaggery

• Gattuso: highs and lows

• Milan’s Future: still looking for answers

• Coming up: upcoming matches

Download this Episode

Thanks again to Susy for her fantastic insights. Follow her on Twitter @SusyCampanale to get more brilliant insights and also follow @footballitalia to get up to the moment Serie A news in English.

Fiorentina-Milan Preview: Things Are Not Always as They Seem

So after a hard-fought victory over Cagliari before Christmas, Fiorentina fell out of the Coppa Italia on Tuesday at the hands of Lazio. Despite the fact that they are eighth on the table and we are eleventh, only two points separate our teams. They have had a bit of a roller coaster season, which is normal for them, but Milan’s dips and rises have been far more extreme. If Wednesday’s feel-good Coppa Italia Derby win gave you a little too much optimism, you may want to take it down a few notches. Because things are not always as they seem.

We should have learned our lesson about Fiorentina years ago

For the Coppa Italia match vs. Lazio on Tuesday, Pioli lined up Dragowski; Astori, Hugo, Milenkovic, Sanchez, Veretout, Benassi, Gaspar, Chiesa, Milan’s former Saponara, and Babacar. Obviously, those were not all of his typical starters. But he’s got pretty much a full team at his disposal, and they didn’t all transfer in this summer, so have certainly gelled more than Milan’s motley crew.

Kalinic conveniently found himself injured ahead of facing his former team. That way he didn’t have to explain why he’s only scored four goals for Milan in 16 appearances. Also injured is Abate. And Gigio, although slightly injured, was called up and will likely play, probably because it hurt him so much more to sit on the bench on Wednesday.

Gattuso’s comments about the state of the squad are far more founded in truth than Montella’s, including the part where he admitted he was probably the worst coach in Serie A. His tactical skills are certainly lacking, but it’s not for not trying. With Fiorentina playing at home, it’s impossible to know if that’s even an advantage. This one is honestly too weird to call, because things are not always as they seem.

Serie A Week 19

Fiorentina vs. Milan

Saturday, December 30 • 12:30 CET (6:30am EST)
This match will be shown on RAI Italia and BeIN Sports in the U.S.A.

  

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