The atmosphere at San Siro during the defeat to Lazio on Sunday night made it clear that the patience is over for the AC Milan fans.
As La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) writes this morning, when San Siro applauds a player who has been sent off and boos most of the rest of the team, you understand that something is wrong, even beyond results.
In Strahinja Pavlovic, the Milan fans have recognised – even despite his mistakes and limitations – the desire and determination of someone who puts everything in for the shirt, even at the risk of sometimes going a bit overboard like for the red card incident.
The supporters present inside San Siro amid a climate of general protest instead gave a very different treatment to the ‘big names’ like Rafa Leao and Theo Hernandez. As the paper writes, ‘patience is over’.
Bickering and boos
Pedro’s penalty, which sealed Milan’s third consecutive defeat after elimination from the Champions League, obviously sparked a reaction from San Siro, which greeted the team with barrages of boos and chants of disapproval.
Even before that, signs of impatience had formed the backdrop to a match played for long stretches in a surreal atmosphere. For example, Theo was greeted by jeers for every corner he took. Leao repeatedly responded to some fans who were critical in the lower tier.
The Portuguese, after providing the assist to Chukwueze for the equaliser, also made the sign of the ears towards the stands. He did this previously, in the loss to Parma back in round two of the season.
Theo and Leao are the faces of Milan’s failed year, because they are the most talented (and the best paid) in the team, just as they were the cover stars of the Scudetto. Hernandez’s mistakes are now countless, while his proverbial sprints are now relegated to the drawer of memories.
Even yesterday the Frenchman was not faultless in coming back to defend (see Zaccagni’s goal) without however giving much in the attacking phase. For Rafa, the discussion shifts to the usual inconsistency. When he lights up, he remains the beacon of Milan, but it does not happen enough.
Illusions and delusions
However, two of the big moves in the last few days of the winter mercato also ended up in the dock. The purchases of Santiago Gimenez and Joao Felix had ignited enthusiasm, hoping they would fire Champions League.
The impact in they made in their debut in the Coppa Italia against Roma – an assist from the Mexican and goal from the Portuguese – however, only enriched the gallery of seasonal illusions, such as the victories against Inter and Real Madrid.
Instead, not even a month later, Milan fell into a bottomless precipice, overtaken even by that Roma against whom they had scored three goals on February 5. Felix and Gimenez quickly lost their way with the rest of their team-mates, even Tijjani Reijnders and Christian Pulisic who dragged them along previously.
Speaking of goals, despite the four stars (Pulisic, Joao Felix, Leao and Gimenez), the Rossoneri have netted five times in the last six games, in which they have never gone above one goal scored. It is not enough, something which is a constant theme.
