A.C. Milan: Max Allegri Starts to Prove His Worth As Milan Sit Atop Of Serie A

The Wednesday win for Milan over Palermo has but confirmed that this season the Rossoneri are serious title contenders. Not only did the win put Milan on top of the Serie A table, but it was done so on the back of a performance that again highlighted that this is a team on the up.

Credit must go to Max Allegri who is starting to show his worth. A novice compared to some of his rivals, the former Cagliari boss has done exceptional with a squad that in some areas is world class and in others the complete opposite.

Even with the arrivals of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Robinho, Milan is a team that has significant gaps in both midfield and defence. Yet, at least in midfield, things seem much improved.

This is mainly due to the re-emergence of former world beater, Gennaro Gattuso. The fiery Calabrian has enjoyed a renaissance this season and here Allegri is due praise. Gattuso’s return to form has not only been great for the side for what he does on the pitch, but also for what he brings to the pitch in terms of determination and attitude.

But against Palermo, Gattuso did not even play. Yet, the likes of Flamini, Ambrosini and Boateng managed to put in a collectively solid display to help Milan to an important victory. Though not outstanding, Flamini continued to build upon his man-of-the-match display against Bari has he proved effective both defensively and offensively.

Alongside him, newcomer Boateng also had a good night, indicating that he too is improving much like many of his colleagues.

Formerly an area of great concern for Milan, how Allegri is managing to get the best out of his available midfielders has lessened the need for any concern for now.

It is not only in midfield that Milan have displayed significant improvement but also in the defence. Sure, the Milan defence still struggles to keep a clean sheet. Nonetheless, in Mario Yepes Allegri may have just discovered an alternative to Alessandro Nesta as the Columbian put in another competent display. More importantly, Thiago Silva actually had his first good game played in the absence of Alessandro Nesta as Yepes proved to be a suitable partner for him.

It is at full back that Milan are the weakest, still. The lack of offensive contribution from full backs Antonini and Abate is a problem. But on the positive side, Abate for the first time is showing signs of actually having developed into a full back. His positioning and defending has improved though he is still far off from the finished article.

Allegri has done fine work with his midfield and defensive chargers. With midfield looking much more competitive and with fewer concerns at the back, it really is in attack that Allegri needs to still find the right combination.

The deployment of Clarence Seedorf as trequartista has been effective if not spectacular decision. But, compared to the two alternatives, Ronaldinho and Robinho, the Dutchman is definitely the better option. It would be nice to see Ibrahimovic given a chance in this role too.

But, Ibrahimovic seems destined to play one of the two striker roles with Pato the obvious first choice to play alongside.

However, it is not the question of who plays where in attack. Rather it is the lack of chemistry that exists amongst the attackers.

Pato still needs to learn to play with those around him because going for goal is not always an option.

Ibrahimovic needs to do the same for he is at times a real bane to Milan’s attacking play. Sure he scores goals and creates them too, for a striker maybe this is all we can ask for. Yet it does not hide the fact that Ibrahimovic for the most part contributes nothing to the general play as was so frustratingly obvious against Palermo.

Ibra’s passing was awful and he even failed to control the ball at times. He is a most capricious talent. One minute he is utterly useless, the next minute he is amazing.

The form book will tell us that Ibrahimovic and Pato are having great seasons. Yet, they can still be much better still.

As for Robinho, he just needs to gain some more confidence and he too can become a much greater goalscoring threat.

For now, Milan fans can bask in the glory of being top of the table. It is an occurrence that is all too infrequent these days.

With Allegri showing just why Berlusconi and Galliani so desperately wanted him, things are indeed looking good for the Rossoneri and one suspects that the club’s stay at the top of the table may not be temporary. The championship is very open this year, Inter are not the side they were last year, and for this reason there is the real possibility that this could be Milan’s year. This weekend’s derby with Inter will provide a good indication as to this.