After struggling a third straight loss in Serie A, Milan‘s depressing streak continues as they lose much more floor of their quest to qualify for the UEFA Champions League. The stress mounts on the Rossoneri, who should discover a solution to bounce again in opposition to Lecce with out certainly one of their key gamers.
As head coach Sergio Conceicao and his gamers put together for his or her essential league match on March 8, a recent setback has emerged. A key determine within the squad can be absent as a result of disciplinary motion, forcing the supervisor to make changes to his beginning lineup. With the quartet of Christian Pulisic, Joao Felix, Rafael Leao, and Santiago Gimenez underneath immense stress to show issues round, they have to now achieve this with no important teammate.
It has now been confirmed that Mike Maignan, Milan’s first-choice goalkeeper, will miss the upcoming Serie A conflict in opposition to Lecce as a result of suspension. The French shot-stopper has been handed a one-game ban and a €15,000 ($15,800) fantastic for an incident that occurred after Milan’s 2-1 loss to Lazio. In keeping with the ruling by the Serie A Sports activities Choose, the 29-year-old was not sanctioned through the match however obtained a post-game suspension for disrespecting the referee within the tunnel resulting in the locker rooms.
“For having, on the finish of the match, within the tunnel resulting in the locker rooms, addressed a disrespectful expression to the referee,” said the official report, as cited by TMW.
This ruling has come as a shock, provided that the French shot-stopper was not proven a card through the recreation. Nevertheless, his post-match actions have resulted in Milan being with out their star goalkeeper for an important league fixture.
Controversial officiating and penalty determination
The suspension stems from a extremely controversial second within the match in opposition to Lazio. Throughout added time, the Frenchman was penalized for a problem on Gustav Isaksen, which led to a last-minute penalty for the Biancocelesti. The choice to award the penalty was contentious, as Maignan appeared to make a respectable play for the ball, and the contact appeared minimal.
Regardless of the VAR intervention, the referee awarded the spot-kick after reviewing only one replay. The ensuing penalty contributed to the Pink and Blacks’ third consecutive Serie A defeat, including additional frustration to an already struggling squad.
What are Milan’s choices with out Maignan?
With Maignan suspended, Milan will flip to Marco Sportiello as his alternative. The Italian goalkeeper can be anticipated to step up in a recreation the place the membership can’t afford to drop extra factors.
Including to Milan’s woes, Strahinja Pavlovic may even miss the match in opposition to Lecce after being despatched off in opposition to Lazio. This implies Conceicao should reshuffle his protection whereas additionally coping with the absence of his beginning goalkeeper.