Ruben Amorim will need time to change the habits established at Milan during Massimiliano Allegri’s tenure, according to Franco Ordine, a commentator for Milan News.
Ordine believes the difficulties Amorim anticipated when he accepted the job have not eased since his arrival. Instead, he argues, the challenge facing the Portuguese coach has become even greater as he attempts to alter Milan’s recent approach and establish a different identity.
Amorim’s initial advantage, Ordine wrote, is that his appointment did not trigger panic at the start of the season. However, that relative calm should not obscure the scale of the work required. The central issue, in Ordine’s view, is to reverse the playing habits developed under Allegri.
Milan had become accustomed to retreating into a deep defensive shape and protecting a low defensive line. The priority was to limit the number of goals conceded before leaving responsibility to the forwards to recover matches through their individual quality.
That approach remained effective even though Milan had been without a recognised centre-forward or striker since January. The team still managed to carry out the plan, relying on its defensive structure and the ability of its attackers to influence games when opportunities arose.
Ordine says Amorim must now devote considerable time to replacing that way of playing with his own principles. The process will involve more than changing the team’s formation or selecting different players; it will require a broader transformation of the mentality and routines that have become established at the club.
He also identifies one difference between the current situation and the period under Allegri. The previous Milan administration and coaching structure had been split into two competing groups. On one side were Furlani, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Moncada, while Tare and Allegri represented the other faction.
That division created a difficult environment around the team and its leadership. Ordine suggests Amorim is in a more favourable position because the club is now being managed directly by Cardinale, who is also offering support to the head coach.
The key uncertainty, however, is how long that backing will remain in place if results and performances fail to improve quickly. Amorim’s task is therefore not only to introduce a new footballing style but also to deliver progress while the club’s hierarchy waits for the changes to take effect.
For now, Ordine’s assessment is that patience will be essential. Amorim has inherited a side shaped by Allegri’s methods, and breaking those patterns is expected to take time.
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