The Bosnian’s injury leads to two solutions, both of which will be practiced in the next matches: Adli has been tried in that role since the summer, otherwise Reijnders in the center with Pobega or Musah on the left
The joke, from what is said, was all in that ball that didn’t want to leave the pitch. The substitution was already approved and ready, Pioli was about to replace Krunic (Loftus-Cheek was already ready on the sidelines), but he didn’t arrive in time. Rade, who up to that point hadn’t missed a single minute since the start of the season, felt a twinge behind his right thigh and left the pitch with a noticeable limp, generating bad feelings about the extent of the problem.
equilibrium
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And now that the problem is clear, Pioli must understand what the best solution could be. The problem has a rather serious relevance for the Rossoneri coach, who has in Krunic a man of balance who has never been more important than this season. Immovable starter in front of the defence, especially guarding the defensive phase since he is flanked by two midfielders – Loftus, Cheek and Reijnders – who often break away. So, how to fix it? Pioli thought about it a lot yesterday – on the day off granted to the team – and then will check on the pitch between today, when training resumes, and tomorrow, during finishing.
situations
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There are two options evaluated by the coach, as he himself clarified: Adli and Reijnders. We use alphabetical order because right now the ballot is open. But they would also be quite different situations. Meanwhile, let’s start by saying that Pioli, after Krunic’s injury, dedicated some more thought to the possibility of using Adli: “Since the beginning of the year I have been trying him in that role and he is doing well, now he will have his opportunities also he”. In any case, it is the coach’s general opinion, “we will have 4 games in 10 days, they will both play”. Adli was “converted” from the attacking midfielder to the center of midfield starting this summer, as the coach recalled. With an incoming market that did not bring an alter ego of Krunic, and with an outgoing one of which Adli was not part (even if it must be said honestly that for Pioli the Franco-Algerian was absolutely transferable), here is perhaps the first real opportunity for Yacine. “Revisited” in the role, since the summer friendlies where the former Bordeaux player was actually always deployed in front of the defence, also finding good playing time in the pre-season. The advantage of using Yacine would consist above all in the consequence of keeping Reijnders as a left midfielder, the position in which he performs best. Question marks? Obviously Adli’s lack of habit in official matches – last season he put together a paltry 138 minutes, with only one appearance as a starter – which could translate negatively into intensity and speed of thought and execution. In any case, as Pioli underlined, if he isn’t in Cagliari it will still happen in the following matches.
characteristics
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The other option therefore is the centralization of Reijnders. The Dutchman is a very intelligent player, capable of operating in the center of midfield because he has playmaking qualities. The hypothesis is therefore absolutely viable, and perhaps at this moment it is also the one that has the greatest probability of coming to fruition, but it still has some drawbacks. The first is that the offensive characteristics of “Mister T” would obviously be limited, the second is that he would also change the face of the left midfielder. Two names on the table, in this case: Pobega or Musah. And here, “philosophical” choice on the opportunity of a more muscular midfielder or more of a running and insertion player. The US international left good basic feelings against Verona. Among other things, in the last two outings for the national team, coach Berhalter had him play right in the center of the midfield in a 4-3-3. Pioli, however, is not currently contemplating him in those parts: his insertions are more useful.
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