Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah are part of the problem at AC Milan, says Arrigo Sacchi, with the club told they signed “too many foreign players”.
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American stars moved to Italy over the summerEnjoyed a bright start to life in Serie AIndividual & collective form has dippedWHAT HAPPENED?
The USMNT stars enjoyed a positive start to life at San Siro on the back of their respective summer transfers from Chelsea and Valencia. Pulisic helped himself to goals and assists in Serie A, while Musah earned plenty of plaudits for his efforts in midfield.
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Milan have, however, gone winless through their last four games to slip six points behind arch-rivals Inter in a domestic title battle while also slumping to the foot of their Champions League group. Head coach Stefano Pioli is now under pressure, with fans booing their own side during a 1-0 defeat to Udinese.
WHAT THEY SAID
Legendary former Rossoneri boss Sacchi has told of the issues in Milan: “Is there somebody thinking it is Pioli’s fault? I hope not. I think the biggest error was made at the start. That’s where all the problems began. Too many foreign players were signed. Those coming from abroad take a while to understand our league and our methods. These guys seem confused and the result is that Milan do not always look like a team. I think boos were fair because the performance had been terrible. The fact is that there isn’t enough time to enter the player’s heads and convince them to become a collective.”
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Sacchi has told Pioli that he needs to find “leadership” within his squad, with the likes of Pulisic and Musah required to raise their game in order to avoid seeing their debut campaign in Italy become a write off at home and abroad.