A Call for Rational Thought…

By: Gianfranco | May 14th, 2009

It is safe to say than in the past few days my frustrations have mounted. It all started with the brash claim of Silvio Berlusconi stating that this season’s failures were on the shoulders of Ancelotti. Now I am fully aware of the fact that in heated moments I too have called for Carletto’s head, but when the owner opens his mouth and not his checkbook, doesn’t this blame gain have an air of lunacy to it? Sure the esteemed opened his checkbook, but for what, Shevchenko and Ronaldinho!? Have these players aided Carletto in his quest for a trophy? Has their purchase made the task of the coach any easier!? Arguable Carletto’s job has been muddled because now he has to deal with the never ending saga of Ronaldinho playing or not playing. Couple this weekly distraction with the notion of keeping Kaka happy while Ronaldinho is on the field, and suddenly standing in Carletto’s shoes seems a lot more of a nightmare than many of us want to make it out be.

The biggest complaint sent the way of Ancelotti has been his tactics. Even the wise old Silvio claims that Milan should be utilizing players who like the ball at their feet. Well first of all if Silvio knew for a moment what he was talking about he would clearly see that the majority of Milan games this season employed players who like the ball at their feet with likes of Clarence, Kaka, Pato, and Ronaldinho featuring. Add the wingback roles of Zambro, Janks, and wing presence of Beckham and puzzlingly you wonder what on Earth could Berlusconi have meant? He meant play my prized Ronaldinho you fool! But lacked the balls to really tell his coach what he felt.

Tactics aside, my biggest concern stemming from the dismissal of Carletto is the void left, which may be impossible to overcome. In 1996 Milan parted ways with the great Don Fabio Cappello who was on his way to Madrid. Fabio of great success, much akin to Carletto, left Milan in the incompetent hands of Oscar Tabarez, a Berlusconi favorite, and usher of the darkest days of Berlusconi Milan history. Not until we welcomed Zaccheroni did we taste success again, and not until Carletto did we experience any form of stability, such that had been missing since Sacchi and Cappello were on the bench. So while many of you call for VanBasten, Leonardo, Rijkaard and others let it be known that these coaches, save Rijkaard to some extent, lack the pedigree and winning mentality that has made Carletto so valuable. Many of you claim a player must be seasoned and tested to earn his time on the pitch yet you quickly are willing to hand the reins of the club to Leonardo who has never coached a day in his life!!? Have we lost our minds!? Of course we haven’t because in the next sentence we are willing to try VanBasten because his failure with Ajax in the Dutch first league which is analogous to Serie B at the moment, is certainly the type of coach I want at the helm.

My call now is not defend Carletto until the last dying minute, but my call is for rationality and an end to this ridiculous notion that an Owner is not to blame for his coaches’ shortcomings, especially when that Owner has a direct charge in the oversight of the club. My call is patience and respect to a Coach that has delivered far more than many in his place, but above all is my call for this horrible notion than any former player can just pick up and manage this Club whose legacy extends far beyond any Brazilian, Dutchmen, or even Italian…