Thirteen years, 387 appearances, two Champions League trophies, two league titles, one Coppa Italia win, two Italian Super Cups, two UEFA Super Cups, and a FIFA Club World Cup. There is absolutely no doubt that Gennaro Gattuso holds invaluable first-hand knowledge of what it is like to play for a successful AC Milan team. The combative midfielder played for the Rossoneri between 1999 and 2012 under the likes of Carlo Ancelotti and Massimiliano Allegri, becoming famous for his fighting spirit, heart and determination on the pitch.
Now, with the club’s ownership in question and having sacked their coach Vincenzo Montella, the current incarnation faces a long road back to those days Gattuso enjoyed as a player, but it is a job that has been handed to him, at least for now. If anyone has the right character to do what Montella had failed to do – that is to successfully unite and bring the best from a playing squad that was only assembled this summer – it is Gattuso.
But does he hold the necessary tactical acumen to go with that spirit?
After coaching spells in Switzerland, Greece and six games in charge of Palermo, his most notable role was at Pisa where he achieved promotion to Serie B during his first season at the helm. However, his tenure was fiery and littered with incident, such as when he slapped his own assistant coach in the face on the touchline. He also quit during pre-season after the aforementioned promotion, only to rejoin the side just one month later.
Relegation with Pisa followed, and “Rino” then took a role back at Milan as a youth team boss. It is perhaps indicative therefore of the current climate at San Siro, that he has achieved such a swift promotion to the first team. With the Rossoneri suffering from too many 0-0 draws under Montella, it is alarming to discover that Gattuso’s Pisa notched up the most scoreless draws in Serie B during 2016/17 with no less than 11.
Any such concerns of passion over experience were inevitably tackled head-on by the coach in his introductory press conference, the 39-year-old keen to address the elephant in the room. “It’s ridiculous to me that all we ever talk about is my grit,” he said. “They didn’t just give me my licence, I studied to get it.”
So what changes can we expect to see in the side with the man nicknamed Ringhio (the Italian word for growl) at the helm? After Montella arguably tinkered with his system too much, the new man at least has a clear idea of the formation he will play. At his introductory press conference Gattuso confirmed that he would deploy a back three, four in midfield and some variation of three forwards, a 3-4-1-2 looking likely.
“We’ll play a three-man defence,” he continued. “I have a great relationship with Montella, although some of our concepts are different. He likes the ball, and I like it too, but we have to be more direct.” He also praised youngster Patrick Cutrone, hinting that he will take the place of Nikola Kalinic who has only scored once in his last 11 matches.
He said that the clash with Benevento this weekend should be played like a “World Cup final”, and – considering the opponents have lost all fourteen of their opening Serie A matches – it should be a straight-forward first win for Gattuso.
After some initial confusion Milan CEO Marco Fassone insisted that the new boss hadn’t been appointed on a temporary basis, but even if results go his way, what happens next is anyone’s guess. Reports in the New York Times and Marca have cast huge doubts over the reliability of the finances of the club’s Chinese investors, with UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin recently admitting he was “worried” about the financial situation at Milan.
These behind-the-scenes issues certainly didn’t help Montella, so Rossoneri fans must hope that their former hero can step into the breach and simply take one match at a time.
