Sergio Conceicao is still the coach of AC Milan even after the three consecutive league defeats and European exit, but his fate seems to be sealed.
Calciomercato.com report that the Milan management confirmed their trust in the Portuguese coach and, barring any extreme changes of direction, he should finish the current season without being sacked before.
It is a different discussion in view of the summer, when a ‘revolution’ is planned in terms of the project. A new sporting director will be added to the managerial team who will have a say in the coach, but who could it be?
The first premise is the feeling among the leadership that – after the failed Paulo Fonseca experiment – they can no longer rely on a gamble or a coach without international experience or at least in Serie A.
Roberto De Zerbi: The first name that has returned to resonate strongly in Milan, after the rumours that did not materialise last summer, is that of De Zerbi. The coach from Brescia is doing very well at Marseille, but could change air at the end of the season by returning to Italy.
Milan like him because he has shown that he can handle pressure, but also make his teams play well. Furthermore, being a declared Milanista, he would also bring the fans closer to the team.
Cesc Fabregas: One of the most talked about coaches in Serie A is Fabregas, who with Como is certainly catching the eye. He has a winning mentality forget from a career in which he lifted almost every trophy, he plays an attacking style and has league experience now.
Milan are not alone in admiring the Spaniard though because Roma, Inter and Napoli (the latter if they were to lose Antonio Conte) are also keeping an eye on him. Como, on the other hand, is trying are every way to keep him.
Antonio Conte: Speaking of Conte, if he were to decide to leave – and he has hinted at the idea – Milan could be one of the possibilities even if it is very complicated. For Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Giorgio Furlani, it would mean admitting that not hiring him last summer was a mistake.
The positive side, however, could be that Conte is synonymous with being a guarantee for restructuring teams who are in a negative moment. After all, he has taken Napoli from ninth to a title fight.
Maurizio Sarri: Free from contract and often attentive to the world of Milan (to the point of giving interviews that the current coach doesn’t like) Maurizio Sarri is another of the names that weren’t explored last summer and who would come running to Milan.
The problem, in this sense, could be represented by the person who could become the new sporting director, Igli Tare. Relations completely froze during the Albanian manager’s last season at Lazio.
Igor Tudor: If for Sarri the relationship with Tare could represent a problem, the reasoning would be the opposite for Tudor who he actually personally picked as the replacement for the former Chelsea boss.
Tudor was one of the names that Milan evaluated for the post-Fonseca era before closing for Conceicao and, in the summer, he could come back into fashion again. Tudor also shared a dressing room with Zlatan Ibrahimovic at Juventus in the 2004-05 season.
Sergio Conceicao: A change on the bench seems inevitable, but the season is still long and in the next 11 league games – plus the Coppa Italia – Conceicao could still write a different page for his future.
His contract is valid until June 2026, but there is a break clause which can be activated by the Rossoneri in June. If the Portuguese coach were to regain the trust of the team and the club, getting a European place and winning the cup, then a farewell might not be so obvious.
