The RedBird project lacks a compass
Gerry Cardinale is currently drafting a blueprint for the future of AC Milan that reads more like a corporate merger than a footballing vision. With the Gazzetta dello Sport reporting his desire to turn Christian Pulisic into the face of a new era, the focus has shifted entirely to branding. Marketing assets don't win Scudetti, and the board’s obsession with commercial visibility over tactical continuity is starting to show its cracks.
We are watching a club try to build a house by picking out the curtains before the foundation is poured. Cardinale needs a sporting director who understands the delicate balance of Serie A, yet the current discourse is dominated by the shadow of Ralf Rangnick. If the front office believes that importing a German-style plug-and-play operation is the fix, they are misreading the room entirely.
The Rangnick obsession is a distraction
The latest reports confirm Rangnick is pushing for total control over the rebuild. This is a dangerous demand for a club that already struggles with coherent hierarchy. Handing the keys to an outsider who views the squad as a data set rather than a collection of personalities is a gamble that rarely pays off in Italy.
The shortlist is narrowing, with Matthias Jaissle and Oliver Glasner emerging as primary targets. As noted in the recent Gazzetta analysis, these are Rangnick disciples, selected specifically for their adherence to a high-press doctrine. It is an interesting stylistic shift, but it assumes the current roster possesses the physical profile to sustain such a demanding work rate over a grueling 38-game campaign. The evidence suggests they do not.
Leao is the ultimate barometer
Rafael Leao is talking to Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and those conversations will arguably be more significant than any board meeting held in Miami. Leao is the most talented player in this squad, yet his future is currently a bargaining chip in a game of tactical chicken. If the incoming coach expects a winger to track back in a rigid 4-2-2-2 system, the club’s most electric threat will be nullified by the end of September.
The tactical friction here is obvious. Forcing a creative individual like Leao into a rigid pressing machine is a recipe for stagnation. If management prioritizes the philosophy of an incoming manager over the actual strengths of their best players, they deserve the mediocrity that follows. Ibrahimovic knows this, and his influence remains the only thing keeping the locker room from total disillusionment.
Predictions for the summer chaos
My read on this? The board will land on Jaissle, satisfy their desire for a "modern" tactical departure, and then scramble to reconstruct the squad to fit his requirements by late August. Expect an aggressive clearing of the wage bill in June to facilitate this turnover, creating more unrest in a squad that arguably needed stability, not a reboot.
They will likely attempt to keep Pulisic as a marquee figurehead, masking the lack of depth elsewhere in the midfield. It is a shallow strategy. I expect Milan to finish outside the top three if they maintain this focus on systemic aesthetics over gritty, pragmatic recruitment. They are prioritizing a €8m branding exercise while the engine of the team is misfiring. This is a project teetering on the edge of a significant regression unless they start hiring based on footballing acumen rather than pedigree by association.
