AC Milan have finally decided on their new management structure, or rather Gerry Cardinale has had to ‘settle’ for internal solutions.
After an exhausting couple of weeks in which the process leading to the final decisions was much more tortuous than many might have expected, Cardinale has determined that a reshuffle from within is the way to go for Milan.
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Although leaks from inside the club are likely to make out that this was the plan all along, it seems as though the Rossoneri were in fact rejected by multiple figures they actually wanted, leading to this U-turn.
What might have been
For the coaching position, one of the first names to be considered with conviction was Andoni Iraola. The former Bournemouth manager turned Milan down and chose a different path, subsequently choosing to join Liverpool.
Oliver Glasner, Matthias Jaissle, and Mauricio Pochettino were long considered candidates, but for reasons that have not been definitively clarified, the agreements necessary to close the deal were not reached.
As the days passed and a solution was not reached, the management finally settled on Ruben Amorim. The former Manchester United manager thus became the chosen candidate to inaugurate the new coaching era after weeks of deliberation and changes in direction.
Even on the managerial front, the path hasn’t been any easier. Among the names that have most influenced the debate surrounding Milan has been that of Ralf Rangnick. The German – after a lengthy period of discussions with the club – decided to continue as the leader of the Austrian national team.
According to various sources, Rangnick chose to end the dialogue with the Rossoneri after having waited a long time for definitive answers to his requests. This incident has been one of the most significant episodes in the entire management search undertaken by the club during this period.
More recently, the names of Eintracht Frankfurt’s Markus Krosche and Timmo Hardung also emerged . In this case, however, the situation would have been different: the two players had expressed willingness to move, but their club had not been open to their departure.
The duo were also clearly not willing to push enough to make things happen. At that point, Milan turned to an internal solution, relying on Hendrik Almstadt and Bobby Gardiner. One thing remains clear: one month after the search began, this almost certainly isn’t what Cardinale had in mind.