This afternoon’s match against Perth Glory will bring Milan’s tour of Asia and Australia to a close. It will be a different kind of challenge compared to those against Arsenal and Liverpool because the home side finished last in the A-League (as in the NBA, there is no relegation). There’s a gulf in quality between the Rossoneri and the Australians, but Allegri still expects focus, effort, and discipline from his players. For example, defensive errors must be avoided at all costs, this has been AC Milan’s Achilles heel in 2024–25. From the very beginning, Max has made it clear that the team must be more solid than in the past, and the early outings, with a three-man defense that became a back five, have been encouraging. The same principles will need to be on display today, though with a few tweaks.
The most important change relates to the formation: in yesterday’s training session at HBF Park, Perth Glory’s home ground, the 3-5-2 used against the Gunners and Reds gave way to a 4-3-3 setup, both in possession and out of possession. Fofana and Pulisic trained a bit less intensively (the latter due to a knock taken in the Liverpool match), but there’s no concern. The others, on the other hand, pushed hard, with Max occasionally interrupting play to explain the proper movements.
Today, Milan is expected to have more of the ball, and whereas in Singapore and Hong Kong the emphasis was on direct vertical play and quick counterattacks, this time the focus will be on switching play and developing down the flanks, where Chukwueze and Jimenez are expected to start the first half. It will be Jimenez’s season debut after a minor muscle injury.
Loftus-Cheek’s forward runs will also be crucial; he’ll start as a mezzala (central midfielder), but he can also operate as an attacking midfielder, which would shift the formation to a 4-2-3-1. In short, while the two matches against the English giants were primarily used to test the defense, today’s exam will focus more on the attack. Okafor, who scored a brace against Slot’s men and is currently seeking a move in the transfer market, will start as the center-forward, as pointed out by La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“In these days,” Allegri said, “we’ve worked well, and against Perth we need to play seriously, respecting an opponent who will give their all. For them, playing against Milan will be significant, but for us too it’s a useful test to improve physically and tactically. Against Arsenal and Liverpool, it was easy to maintain high levels of focus and concentration. This time we’ll see how much we’ve grown mentally in terms of respecting the opponent.
This is a meaningful point, because the coach doesn’t want Maignan and his teammates to have the inconsistency in performance that plagued last season. It’s a matter of focus and motivation: under Allegri, those will always need to be at the highest level. Starting from the Coppa Italia debut on August 17 against Bari, and continuing through a league campaign where “Napoli are the Scudetto favorites, because whoever wins is always the favorite. Then there’s Inter, who are strong and have been doing great work for years, as well as Juve, Atalanta, Roma, Fiorentina, and Lazio… There are many teams fighting for the top four spots
Today’s match will mark the Ecuadorian’s first start. He had some difficulty against the Reds, but on Saturday he had only one training session under his belt, now, the former Brighton player has had more time to prepare. “He’s strong,” Max assured. In midfield, there will be room for Comotto, the youth academy gem who is expected to go on loan to Spezia.
