Former AC Milan manager Fabio Capello has weighed in on the club’s challenging start to the season, addressing both their poor performance and recent player controversies. In an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport, Capello didn’t mince words when discussing the team’s struggles and the behavior of key players Theo Hernandez and Rafael Leao.
Capello was particularly critical of Hernandez and Leao’s actions during the recent Serie A match against Lazio. “Theo and Leao were stomping their feet like children throwing tantrums,” Capello stated. He advised that while it’s appropriate for the club to address the issue, “if Fonseca wants to maintain control of the team, he must resolve this himself and ensure the players follow him.”
Regarding Milan’s overall performance, Capello expressed surprise at their lackluster start. “Milan surprises me. After a year of being an unbalanced team with little order and many goals conceded, they’ve started the same way, without equilibrium. And they’re already chasing Inter,” he remarked. Quoting his friend Ottavio Missoni, Capello added, “It’s the midfield’s fault.”
The experienced manager also emphasized the importance of these early points, especially given the club’s ambitions following their recent transfer market activities. “Points are points, if you lose them, you have to recover them: especially if, after a certain type of market, the ambitions are important. And these are teams with 40-50 thousand season ticket holders,” Capello explained.
Looking ahead to the title race, Capello favors Inter Milan as the frontrunner. “Inter is the most ready, the most complete, the most tested in their playing system,” he said. However, he cautioned Inter manager Simone Inzaghi about the challenges of rotation, referencing a past mistake: “The most difficult thing for Inzaghi will be squad rotation. Be careful not to make the error he made at Benfica’s home, changing more than half the team: you change two or three players, at most.”
