Milan’s dominating win over Juventus stole the headlines, but two smaller stories have been on my mind – the rise of Monza in the past month and an incredible centre-back performance early in the season.
By Matteo Bonetti, US Serie A expert
Injury-ravaged Milan bounce back
The game of the round was once again at San Siro, as Milan hosted a seemingly resurgent Juventus, who had won two straight and looked to put their worst form behind them. Milan came into this game missing nearly half of their best XI through injury, which made Juve manager Max Allegri’s comments from a few weeks ago even more comical. Allegri claimed that Milan and Inter would struggle too, if they had the amount of injuries that Juventus had succumb to. Well, the Rossoneri not only had more injuries than Juve, but they thoroughly outplayed them in a statement win in front of an incredible San Siro atmosphere.
Stefano Pioli benched Charles De Ketelaere after another unconvincing performance midweek against Chelsea in favour of Brahim Díaz, who lost his starting place last season after an inconsistent run of form. Brahim took the opportunity that was presented to him by scoring the most memorable goal of his career – a coast to coast run, darting by multiple Juventus defenders (including a bizarrely statuesque Leo Bonucci). It was a momentous occasion for Brahim, who instantly ripped his kit off and was paraded on the shoulder of his teammates under the Curva Sud.
Apart from Brahim, centre-back Fikayo Tomori was sensational. His ultra aggressive style makes it difficult for the opposing striker to cleanly settle a ball with their back to goal. The English international also has a curious record – two goals in his Serie A career, both of them coming against Juventus.
Monza’s incredible turnaround
There have been two eras in Monza’s season so far – the one before and after Raffaele Palladino took charge of the club. Giovanni Stroppa only managed a measly single point in five Serie A matches, conceding 14 goals in the process. Since Palladino took over, they’ve been perfect. Three wins out of three, six goals scored, none conceded; with one of the wins coming against Juventus in his first game in charge. Monza are now playing like the team that was promised to fans during the summer, where they had arguably the most impressive transfer window by a newly promoted club in Italian football history. Monza loaded up on Italian internationals, and they’re now starting to gel. The side have the fifth highest possession percentage in Serie A, mostly due to their fantastic ball playing midfield consisting of Nicolo Rovella and Stefano Sensi – two traditional “registi” (deep lying playmakers) who know how to take care of the ball and keep it moving.
The defence has been turned around as well, with former Arsenal centre-back Pablo Marí at the centre of the back three. This form hasn’t looked like a lucky blip either, they’re genuinely dominating teams since Palladino took charge – and we’re still waiting for their star attacker Gianluca Caprari to get back to his form from last season when he was lighting it up for Hellas Verona.
Monza are becoming a must watch, with their fearless style of possession play and not changing anything about how they approach a game regardless of who they’re facing.
Kim Min-Jae’s Stunning Start
It’s rare that I would dedicate one of the three main topics to a centre-back, but here we are after what we’ve seen so far from Napoli’s summer signing.
Kim Min-Jae has been unbelievably good, to the point where you wonder how Napoli could’ve possibly acquired him for so little (reportedly €18m). Kim joined from Fenerbahçe as the direct replacement for Kalidou Koulibaly, and did so with little excitement. His name wasn’t one that was known around Serie A fan circles, so there didn’t seem to be much expectation when he made his first start for the club in August.
Napoli’s scouting department has been on another level this past summer, identifying young talents in smaller leagues that could instantly transition their skillset to Serie A.
Since the summer, Kim has picked up September Player of the Month honours, helped his team get to first place in the standings and is one half of the second best defensive partnership in the league in terms of goals conceded, alongside Amir Rrahmani. What’s more impressive is how Kim has matched the best version of Kalidou Koulibaly so quickly – at 6’3, the Korean international is deceptively quick, so you can play a high line without worrying too much about a striker beating him in behind. He’s also very aggressive, reads the game exceptionally well for a player without much experience in the top European leagues, and has looked dominant in the air. While two months is a small sample size to make sweeping statements about a player, so far he’s been the most impressive defender in the league.
(Images from IMAGO)
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