‘Not ready’, ‘out of control’ and ‘the end of the world’: What Amorim’s words tell us about Milan’s state

By: Oliver Fisher

Ruben Amorim is not one to hold back when it comes to speaking his thoughts to the media, and the last few days are no exception.

The past week or so has seen Amorim have to digest the best and worst of his AC Milan side. The 3-1 derby win over Inter generated a euphoria that begun whispers of the word ‘Scudetto’, before a dismal defeat to Ferencvaros which saw Milan drop to 29th in the Europa League standings.

This rollercoaster of extremes didn’t stop either side of those two games either. Before the victory over the Nerazzurri a 2-1 lead had been coughed up against Bologna, who scored three times in the second half to win at San Siro and inflict the first league defeat on the Rossoneri.

Yesterday, the Diavolo responded to the season low-point against the Hungarians by beating a Genoa side that had won their last three games and four of their last five. This Milan team is a very difficult one to work out, and it seems even the manager is struggling to do so.

After the Ferencvaros and Genoa games, we learned a lot about where Amorim sees his team to be at. Some key lines from his post-match comments demonstrated a wide spectrum of reaction, from anger to pride, passing through encouragement and worry.

Ruben Amorim has often gone to bat for his players after negative performances and results this season, but it seems that the defeat on Thursday night had pushed his patience to the brink as he tore into his team after the game.

“There’s no explanation. There’s nothing I can say, especially about the first half. I don’t remember another first half like it. It’s about ambition, concentration, desire,” he said.

“We gave away opportunities, we gave away stupid gifts. We weren’t prepared to play football tonight. I usually have a lot to say in defence of our team, but not tonight. We need to be more humble and understand what happened.”

For the first time we saw a peek behind the mask, one that has very often been one portraying an optimistic and positive expression. Amorim knew there was no point attempting to lie to the supporters, the media but above all to himself.

What we know is that Amorim echoed the ferocity of these sentiments when speaking in the dressing room after full-time in what was likely the first dressing down that the team got. Six players were reported to have disappointed more than the others, too.

Above all, what stood out was the fact that the head coach opted to question whether his players wanted it enough. This was no longer a question of learning an identity, rotation or an injury crisis: it became a matter of heart.

Another intriguing extract from the post-Ferencvaros tirade that Amorim went on was about the squad’s ability to balance playing in two different competitions, namely Serie A and the Europa League.

“We’re not ready to be competitive on two fronts. We need to work on our way of looking at football and how we approach matches. There are no excuses tonight, there’s nothing I can say.

“I have to focus on the league, obviously, but we also have to do well in the Europa League. We must and can win games despite the rotation. We have to be ready – we’re not now – to play and win every three days.

“But I won’t give up on this competition. But as long as the mathematics don’t condemn us, we’ll fight in this competition as we do in the others.”

Once again, Amorim offered a bit of a revelation: the league is the absolute priority for Milan this season. It may not exactly be revolutionary information, given that a top four spot remains the most accessible avenue to the main objective for 2026-27: securing a Champions League return.

And yet, in his emotional outburst, the former Sporting CP and Manchester United boss told us all in black and white that Serie A will be the focus. As a result, it’s right to expect more ups and downs in Europe, especially with such a depleted squad.

There is an element of observational realism about Amorim’s words; almost an admission of defeat in his attempts to spin two plates at the same time and get the most out of the resources at his disposal. Does it suggest a Europa League resurgence is coming? Not exactly.

Amorim has not made a habit of mentioning individuals ever since his arrivals, both in his pre-match words but especially after games in which emotions are running high. However, he brought up someone who was absent for the Ferencvaros game.

“Everyone needs to train like Pavlovic. He’s ready to die in training. He’s a good example. Sometimes when players don’t start, they struggle. But there are no excuses, we should have won even with those who started,” he said.

Going into the season there were some who were legitimately questioning whether Strahinja Pavlovic would even be a tactical fit for Amorim’s usual 3-4-2-1 system, given that he prefers more composed, ball-playing outside centre-backs.

The answer to those doubts is that in November the Serbian has become the shining light in the eyes of his manager. We mentioned earlier that it had become a question of heart, and nobody can doubt that Pavlovic has that in abundance.

For all of the talk about tactics, systems, shapes and patterns, football is a simple game that very often comes down to who wants it more. In this regard, Amorim elevated Pavlovic as the example to follow, while hoping he returns from injury for the Frosinone game after the break.

Moving on to the post-Genoa reflections, what was quite apparent was that Ruben Amorim was in no mood to get carried away. In fact, if anything, he revealed his belief that his team are still miles off where he wants them.

“What I feel is that, when we’re competitive, we’re difficult to beat, and now we’re steering the game towards our style. We push for control with the ball.

“When we’re not able to be competitive, we’re completely out of control. It’s a big difference, but it’s something we need to work on. But again, the team’s evolution, the way we’re playing, is completely different from the start of the season, and I’m happy with that.

“We should have more points. I’m clearly not happy with the European games, not just because of the results, but because of the performance. Results can happen, but the performances are far from what we want. However, I think we’ll be a better team in the future.”

So, for now this version of Milan is not one that satisfies the coach. The words are a good summary of what the last six games have shown, in which there have been an even split of victories and defeats: on their day the team can beat anyone in the league, but on an off-day they can lose to anyone too.

What Amorim seems keen to hammer home is that progress for this season will be judged on the ability to bring the ceiling closer to the floor. In other words, we have seen the potential of this team already with some impressive wins, yet the base level for performances remains frighteningly low.

Consistency is not just about being able to string together several positive results in a row, something the current Rossoneri do not seem capable of. It is about the repeated displaying of an idea and an identity every few days, to suggest the team are getting closer to the vision the coach has.

Various things make that difficult (perhaps unachievable, based on Amorim’s other comments) right now, such as the injury situation and the multiple windows needed to sculpt the squad. Progress is not always linear, but the target has been set.

One of the themes that Amorim has been consistently questioned on this season is how to unlock the club-record signing Goncalo Ramos, who remains stuck on three goals (one of which was a penalty).

After the Genoa game, he said: “I think we’re lacking time in the final third. We control the ball away from the opponent’s penalty area. This is also key for Goncalo Ramos to have more clear-cut chances. It’s clearly not Goncalo’s fault.

“Pulisic is far from the penalty area. Gonçalo is far from the penalty area. All these players play away from the penalty area, so I can say we’re still far from the final product, because we’re still working on good progression, but then in the final third of the pitch we waste a lot of time with the ball there.”

This is one of the points of ‘evolution’ that Amorim clearly wants to see from his side, but is yet to achieve. Milan are not yet a team that can sustain pressure in the opposition half, nor can they penetrate the box with any regularity either.

In fact, a report from Sky backed this up with some interesting numbers, look specifically at data per 30 minutes of actual possession. Milan are first in Serie A for build-up actions, but they are 20th for entries into the final third and entries into the opposition box.

Amorim’s side are 19th for percentage of touches in the attacking third and 18th in percentage of touches in the opposition box. When the Rossoneri have the ball, it is rarely in a threatening area.

With numbers like these, there isn’t much for Ramos to get on the end of, and it makes the positive attacking numbers (23 goals in 11 league games) feel quite unsustainable.

The Portuguese striker meanwhile is first in the Milan squad in Serie A for interceptions, recoveries, touches in the middle third and touches in the opposition half. He is second for receptions, touches and duels, and third for passes.

Simply put, the No.9 is being drawn away from the area he should be operating in because the team are not capable of sustaining spells of possession further up the field, so he needs to drop deeper to feel involved.

This is something Amorim must work on, because while the goals are coming from other sources for now – in some cases due to the space Ramos helps create – it could all come tumbling down unless the attacking play improves more generally.

Finally, we end with what was perhaps the most passionate part of Amorim’s comments following the win at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris on Sunday, again centred around the levels he expects from his team.

“It’s the mentality. When you’re a player, there are no off days. If you play for Milan, for these clubs, there are no off days. You can’t show up like we did on Thursday and then turn it on again for Sunday. It’s not possible, it’s not something that will work.

“It’s not a physical condition, it’s a question of anxiety about defeat. If you ‘panic’ about defeat, it’s not that you’re afraid of losing, but that you know that losing is the end of the world. That’s the feeling I want my teams to have.”

In many ways, the manager was speaking in a way that channels how fans have experienced the past week. How is it possible that Milan can be completely outplayed by a side sat third in the Hungarian lead just days after convincingly beating the Italian champions?

Against Genoa, how can the team play as they did in the first half, and then appear to completely drop off a cliff in the second half when the time came to dig deep and bring the result home? The disparity in levels both in-game and from match to match is astounding everyone, even the man in charge.

What Amorim said about wanting his side to fear losing was particularly poignant. In his time at the club so far he has repeatedly stressed that feeling of responsibility to honour the red and black shirt and all that comes with that, including the importance of results.

Some may argue that encouraging an ‘end of the world’ type mentality will not help the players play more carefree and will actually only stiffen them up. Yet, it could also provide the stimulus for the fight and the courage that Amorim clearly so desperately wants.

There is a hint of irony about the ‘no days off’ comment, as Amorim has given the squad a one-week break, at least those who were not called up by their national teams. When everyone reconvenes there will be another crucial stretch of games to see out the year, starting with a home match against the surprise package Frosinone.

For all of the energy, passion and emotion that Ruben Amorim speaks with, it will eventually be time for words to become deeds. Consistency must be not a distant mirage but some thing tangible that emerges.

Only then will a full buy-in be achieved and patience be awarded. Otherwise there will always be the fear that darkness follows light.