Long meeting with the former Palace manager. But it will still take some time to decide
The new Milan, to be rebuilt from the foundations, is still in the planning phase. There are various hypotheses being studied but only one will be given concreteness. The most probable at the moment is the one sponsored by the financier of the works, Gerry Cardinale, and it could not be otherwise: the owner of RedBird had announced that he would personally take charge. And if Gerry chooses to be present at the meeting with Oliver Glasner it is the first demonstration of the consideration he has for the coach. If we also reflect on the duration of the meeting, around six hours, we have another clue about the Rossoneri owner’s appreciation for the Austrian coach: on the contrary, he would not have spent a quarter of his day in the company of the man who has now become the main candidate for the Rossoneri bench. The meeting should have taken place in Germany. Also present, although no official source confirms, is Ibra, Gerry’s main advisor. Can it still be defined as trustworthy? There are also rumors of some tension between Zlatan and Cardinale: the certainty is that the former champion does not have a defined role in the Rossoneri organization chart, therefore not even a specific decision-making weight. Ibra suggests but it is always and only Cardinal who chooses.
European experience
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And Gerry would focus on Glasner today: in turn the coach is intrigued by the opportunity, also ready to test himself at San Siro. It would be his fourth different European championship after coaching in Austria, Germany and England. He won the Europa League with Eintracht Frankfurt and an alternative treble in the last season at Crystal Palace, with whom he finished fifteenth in the Premier League: Community Shield, FA Cup and Conference League. He has international experience and a modern playing style, the two prerogatives that Cardinale is looking for. From his men, in the meantime, only silence. It is possible that there will be some communication on the progress of the work before the weekend, but without certainties. To have the first concrete news we will have to wait at least until next week. With Allegri the start of the new season was set for 12 July, with a new coach the dates could also change: essentially Milan 26-27 could recognize themselves in their new protagonists only a month after the restart.
global focus
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The Glasner track would rejoin the one that leads to Ralf Rangnick, the technical director to whom Cardinale plans to entrust the actual reconstruction. An architect to whom you can hand over the keys to the new course, at all levels: technical, tactical, disciplinary, youth. A dominant presence in all areas: there have also been meetings and contacts with Rangnick and others will follow. The next ones, necessarily, at a distance. Today the coach that Milan had identified in 2020 as Pioli’s heir is the coach of Austria leaving for the American World Cup. And the day has arrived to begin a new World Cup adventure, awaited for 28 years. His focus will inevitably be on the national team, with the Federation also offering him a contract renewal. Rangnick took time to reflect. He will be able to decide before officially starting the tournament (the debut at the World Cup will see Austria playing on June 17th against Jordan) or perhaps choose which path to follow only at the end of the competition. We’ll see. The connection between Rangnick and Glasner dates back to their days at Salzburg, more than ten years ago, and could now become relevant again at Milan. The opposite is also true: there is no double bond, so Glasner could arrive even without Rangnick and vice versa. Also because in the meantime the interviews continue with other candidates, without having yet chosen who to assign the various parts to.
alternative routes
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If it were up to Ibrahimovic, Zlatan would more willingly reward Pochettino, US coach, and perhaps Ramon Planes in management. A way to distribute the various skills while avoiding centralization. So Zlatan himself would continue to have a say. For Pochettino, the host, what was said for Rangnick applies even more: he will only have attention for the World Cup and the legitimate ambition of going as far as possible in the tournament. And how much longer can Milan wait before laying the foundations?
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