Rajath Kumar

AC Milan, football blogger, formerly @SerieAFFC @Ogilvy, features on @SempreMilanCom, presently VP Marketing at @add_axio

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

Allegri, Tare, Furlani & Moncada have been fired. A major restructuring is underway.

Wrote about the systemic unravelling of Milan this season, capturing some telling stats that illustrate the scale of collapse.
https://t.co/GSv1JxrDOA

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

Italy win The U-17 European Championships hosted in Estonia this year and the official social media post carries the logo from the 2022 edition in Israel. Sigh.

[Nazionale Italiana ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ @Azzurri]

GLI AZZURRINI SONO CAMPIONI D’EUROPA! 🇮🇹

Il sogno si è avverato 💙

#U17EURO
#Under17 #Azzurrini #VivoAzzurro

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

A generational talent is available for a bargain fee, yet Europe's elite remain uninterested? Barcelona somehow chose to spend nearly €80m on Anthony Gordon instead. A grave injustice for one of the game's most technically gifted wingers.

[Guido Olivares🇮🇹 @Guidolino8]

Romano: “#Leao vuole andar via dal #Milan e lo ha ribadito. Il portoghese spera in Premier League oppure Liga per il suo futuro. Ad oggi il portoghese da questi due campionati non ha però ricevuto offerte concrete”

[Rohit Rajeev @keralista]

Thought I'd use this opportunity to get a view on what tactics Ralf Rangnick used. My article for Tactical Football Analysis covers Austria's tactics and their chances for the World Cup next week

https://t.co/uC116dh5PH

#2026wc #Austria #Rangnick #Milan

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

@SettersD10S Yes, although does he hold down a starting role at those clubs. Even the bottom tier clubs hustle of the ball, he will need to adapt. Which I highly doubt he will.

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

Leão thinks his talent would be better appreciated in the Premier League or La Liga, but he may be in for a reality check. In those leagues, attackers are expected to contribute off the ball, not drift through games. He’d also need to become far more clinical in front of goal.

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

@SettersD10S Yes, and the Premier League has direct, fast athletic attackers in abundance. Unfortunately for him, they have other attributes that he doesn’t possess. I think he has an inflated sense of his footballing ability, largely because of his prominence at Milan.

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

@dani8i Yeah, quite possibly.

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

@LombardiaMax I think that is an important criteria. They made their second final in 20 years. Inter did that twice in the last 3 years. When Arsenal call themselves one of the biggest clubs, they are never quite able to quantify that. Because, the usual factors don’t apply.

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

Apart from the occasional , well-informed Arsenal fan, most fans of the club I’ve met are much like this. They’re cut from a different cloth – inflated view of the club’s stature and delusions of grandeur.

[Max Lombardia @LombardiaMax]

Holy shit this is genuinely embarrassing

[Rohit Rajeev @keralista]

Going by what is reported (let's also take it with a pinch of salt), let's assess the 2 options

Option 1: Rangnick- Vivell- Spors- Glasner.

4 people who have worked together at various points in time and have a common approach and philosophy to football. They would know, in short, what is to be done where. Their appointments would not only be beneficial to the first team but also to an ailing futuro that has produced Liberali, Camarda, Zeroli etc.  not to mention upgrading our health department, modern training methods for better fitness and when Rangnick finally leaves a guy would in place to continue everything. In short a succession plan.

Option 2- Planes, Kirovski, Pochettino

Poch has a decent track record. Not bad, but not good either. Done well at Spurs. Worked with Planes at Espanyol (?) in his career. 

Planes has worked in 14 clubs in 20 years. No real continuity except for 3 stints and Al Ittihaed, Barcelona and Rayo Vallecano. Credited with bringing Araujo, Pedro, Gavi and Ansu Fati to the main XI. But had a terrible market when he took the reigns as the Barcelona main team. 

Kirovski. I mean should I even really say anything ? Nobody knows who he is. I know that he is a UCL winner with Dortmund (didn't play any games) but his pedigree as a executive is really questionable. 

Now considering Option 1 and Option 2 I don't know why it's not a slam dunk we should go for option 1. I do not know why Cardinale is taking his time. The problem isn't Zlatan. The problem is the person who listens to Zlatan despite knowing what Zlatan is upto.

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

@RohithNair An incredible campaign, congratulations! Been a long wait to see Arsenal at these heights and I’m sure it must feel extremely gratifying.

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

Eze the artist. Gabriel the lion, impervious, often impassable. PSG’s players get a passing mention. Beraldo’s crucial penalty is chalked down to Raya jumping early. Watching as a neutral, such biased commentary often makes it impossible to root for PL teams.

[🎙️MLM PODCAST🎙️ @MLMpodcast01]

MLM PODCAST SEASON REVIEW!

@LombardiaMax , Zio Gino and @rajathkumar review Milan’s 25/26 season.

We talk about all the players, the manager and the ownership.

We talk about what we think the summer holds and much more!

The MLM podcast will be back next season, have a great summer and thank you for all your support! We really appreciate it!

🔗 https://t.co/Fm2zCjX2zr

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

Allegri failed to guide Milan to Champions League qualification, yet will still coach in the competition next season. Bizarre, but also telling of the respect and appeal he still commands in Italy. Few managers are capable of inheriting a Conte-built squad and optimizing it.

[🎙️MLM PODCAST🎙️ @MLMpodcast01]

We’ll be recording this tomorrow night!

Very lucky to have @rajathkumar back on to discuss Milan’s season. His knowledge and insight this season has been excellent! 👌

[SempreMilan @SempreMilanCom]

☢️ #ACMilan went from contenders to casualties as Allegri's style other factors caused a collapse.

🔎 @rajathkumar analyses the soul-searching that must be done after the Armageddon 👇

➡️ https://t.co/0iQ50qabiI

[Rohit Rajeev @keralista]

What this whole "recycling of managers" thing does is that it creates a stagnant environment where there is no new knowledge coming in.

Sports and sports science is growing everyday and it would be foolish for Italy and Italian football to deny it. It's like how the boomer generation did not believe in smart phones earlier but now without it you are completely disconnected from this world.

Data Science has become a big part of footballing decisions and AI will become a big part of it in the next 4-5 years. Trying to deny it's importance and existence like how 75 year old Capello does will not help Italian football.

The growth of the PL is linked to the hire of foreign managers. Brendan Rodgers didn't believe in data, but Klopp did and he worked together with Edwards and Spearman and they created a successful period. Liverpool's success inspired Bournemouth, Palace etc to hire foreign managers and have projects and instead they found success.

This fact is something that should happen in Italy. New knowledge is needed because the old knowledge does not work anymore. The data is outdated, the methodologies are fragile. Tactics might be relevant but approach to games in Europe have changed.

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

@keralista Probably because he knows he doesn’t have takers of similar stature. Turkey is perhaps the most realistic option, which, at 27 may not be an appropriate step for him. It appears he doesn’t have a market outside of that. Unless United come in.

[Rohit Rajeev @keralista]

What in the name of God did i watch there ? Fofana walking behind the Cagliari player instead of trying to win the ball back ASAP. Its like he was escorting the guy to his back pass or something. Terrorball at its finest

#Allegri

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

@Sagar_ACM But, who did they beat enroute to the semi finals? And how was the semifinal performance? You do remember how many times Pioli managed to get out of the group stage’s otherwise, right?

Pioli have a fortuitous run in the CL and being blamed otherwise, both can be true.

[Rajath Kumar @rajathkumar]

Pioli is delusional if he thinks that the sentiment is negative because the team finished second. This comment shows how detached, arrogant, stubborn and tone deaf he is. With this attitude, he will never take Milan to the next level.

[Milan Eye @MilanEye]

🚨 Pioli to DAZN:

“In these years we have raised the expectations of everyone that now a second place finish looks a poor result.

I evaluate my work based on what I found and what I leave. I found Milan in a situation and I leave it, if I actually leave it, in another one. Nothing else matters.”