GdS: Meetings, tactics and ‘courage’ – how Fonseca got into the minds of the Milan squad | OneFootball

Paulo Fonseca has proudly declared on multiple occasions since becoming AC Milan head coach that he will stay true to himself and his playing principles, but he has had to navigate choppy waters early on.

After all – La Gazzetta dello Sport writes – when a coach finds himself close to being sacked as he reportedly was after the Liverpool game it is natural to change the methods a bit. The rebirth of Milan obviously passes through Fonseca’s tactical work, but this is only part of the reconstruction.

Behind the scenes there is also work on the minds, on self-esteem, on the collective spirit. If you think about it, even the novelty of the two centre-forwards has implications that go beyond the strictly game benefits: it is a message to the whole team to tell them that courage is needed. Having done it in the derby is proof of concept.

Stefano Pioli loved to lock himself in the office with his players to discuss and get a feel for the current situation. Fonseca may prefer group analysis, but he also pays a lot of attention to the psychological aspect.

More Stories / The Match

GdS: Predicted XIs for Bayer Leverkusen vs. Milan – 3-4-2-1 meets a 4-2-3-1

1 October 2024, 11:00

Lucchese 1-1 Milan Futuro: Hodzic scores again as Bonera’s side get another point

1 October 2024, 10:39

GdS: ‘Milan without fear’ – Fonseca’s anti-Bayer plan explained

1 October 2024, 10:19

One reflection was particularly striking on the eve of the Lecce game, when he said: “We are still far from the Milan I have in mind. We haven’t grown much defensively, I would like to have other things. And we also need to grow a lot offensively, we have a lot to improve. I’m talking about the game.

“With Inter we had the ball but only in transition moments, not in organisation. We need to be a team that dominates up front, we need to play more time in the attacking half of the pitch.” It was also a way to keep any excesses of confidence generated by the adrenaline of the derby at bay.

Fonseca, moreover, did nothing but reiterate the concepts expressed the day he was presented: dominant football, a defensive phase mainly executed by running forward and the use of ball possession.

All this has been transformed into a single word: ‘courage’, which was put in all the languages ​​within the Rossoneri squad and placed in every corner of the San Siro dressing room before the derby. The result: they played with exactly that.

The whispers coming from Milanello among other things in the very first weeks of Fonseca’s tenure spoke of a coach who was not managing to get into the heads of the players. The days that led up to the derby were the crucial ones to turn things around in this respect too.

There was a barbecue organised by the coach on Friday, the day before the derby and an event that at Milanello is always greeted with particular enthusiasm, plus a long chat between the coach and his boys in the middle of the week. An hour and a half of conversation, near enough the length of a game.

The choice was made – in this case strong and against the grain – not to show the team clips of Inter with the objective of focusing only on themselves and what they can do well rather than instilling doubt.

The next idea in Fonseca’s mind is the management of the captain’s armband, destined to pass with a certain frequency from arm to arm depending on the moments, opportunities and needs. It means making people responsible, and Leao got it on Friday.