11-23-2012, 11:08 AM
(This post was last modified: 11-23-2012, 11:14 AM by ACMILAN1983.)
Pato's comments are really irritating and to me a sign of immaturity from the player. He wants to play but it's not like he's not getting his chances. He's been playing quite regularly since returning from injury and that's after two years of frequent injuries. I had anticipated him getting infrequent playing time until January, mostly to try and pace his return to monitor his progress and not take risks with relapse.
On top of this, he's not exactly doing fantastic things when on the pitch. As much as he wants to deny it, he's obviously hesitating when playing and isn't playing freely. Anderlecht was the perfect example of this. He had one awful challenge against him where as a result his hamstring was stretched more than normal. He gripped onto his hamstring immediately in fear of the worst and then playing through the rest of the match, never looked totally comfortable or confident in his body. Turns out he's just got some bruising on his thigh without any risks of further injury. The kid's not playing freely yet, we can't just keep putting him in the starting lineup until mentally's he's more free.
As for performance, to me the biggest difference between Pato of 2010 and Pato of 2012 is confidence. In the past, there was no hesitation to run at defenders, towards the ball to take responsibility or take hard tackles. He would shoot on instinct and wouldn't over think when on the ball. In 2012, He rarely makes the runs towards the man on the ball to give him an option for the pass. He doesn't look as carefree when taking on opponents and is afraid whenever getting any hard contact. As for on the ball, he doesn't take the shot on instinct anymore, something which nefremo and I discussed of late (his snapshot) and he's become too ponderous on the ball, rather than playing naturally. He needs to get past his mental/confidence problems before he can expect to become an undoubted started again.
Finally, his comments bother me. It seems his comments were directed mostly at Allegri, as it's Allegri who decides if he plays and he said publicly he told the coach he'd score. However, his comments are disrespectful towards others and quite selfish. Saying "Milan are doing well and El Shaarawy is doing well, but I want to play" essentially means how Milan and El Shaarawy are doing isn't his concern and he really ultimately only cares about himself. For Berlusconi, who just said he considers Pato unsellable this is a slap in the face. Also El Shaarawy, who has been keeping the club afloat this season with his performances and laid the goal onto a plate for Pato, what must he be thinking about being dragged into these negative comments after showing him so much support (both in his assist and his comments for Pato post match).
Pato has acted like a spoilt child with these comments. Anyone can understand the frustration of not playing, but this isn't the way to deal with the situation. He should have spoken personally to Allegri first (something which he should be doing regularly to try and become the leaders he's expected to be in the side) and should that have no conclusion, he should have spoken to his agent and other members of the club (i.e. Galliani) privately to discuss what his future is at the club.
edit: Also, about what should be done with Pato, I think Galliani needs to take a hard and soft approach to this. He needs to be disciplined that this isn't acceptable behaviour and he could and should have handled the situation better. However, he should be reasoned with to help him understand how slow recovery will help him in the long term and when all is said and done, he's a valuable commodity at the club. At 23, he's still young and impulsive and therefore it's likely this is fairly easily resolved. If he's unreasonable and unwilling to listen, then there's little choice but to look at selling.
On top of this, he's not exactly doing fantastic things when on the pitch. As much as he wants to deny it, he's obviously hesitating when playing and isn't playing freely. Anderlecht was the perfect example of this. He had one awful challenge against him where as a result his hamstring was stretched more than normal. He gripped onto his hamstring immediately in fear of the worst and then playing through the rest of the match, never looked totally comfortable or confident in his body. Turns out he's just got some bruising on his thigh without any risks of further injury. The kid's not playing freely yet, we can't just keep putting him in the starting lineup until mentally's he's more free.
As for performance, to me the biggest difference between Pato of 2010 and Pato of 2012 is confidence. In the past, there was no hesitation to run at defenders, towards the ball to take responsibility or take hard tackles. He would shoot on instinct and wouldn't over think when on the ball. In 2012, He rarely makes the runs towards the man on the ball to give him an option for the pass. He doesn't look as carefree when taking on opponents and is afraid whenever getting any hard contact. As for on the ball, he doesn't take the shot on instinct anymore, something which nefremo and I discussed of late (his snapshot) and he's become too ponderous on the ball, rather than playing naturally. He needs to get past his mental/confidence problems before he can expect to become an undoubted started again.
Finally, his comments bother me. It seems his comments were directed mostly at Allegri, as it's Allegri who decides if he plays and he said publicly he told the coach he'd score. However, his comments are disrespectful towards others and quite selfish. Saying "Milan are doing well and El Shaarawy is doing well, but I want to play" essentially means how Milan and El Shaarawy are doing isn't his concern and he really ultimately only cares about himself. For Berlusconi, who just said he considers Pato unsellable this is a slap in the face. Also El Shaarawy, who has been keeping the club afloat this season with his performances and laid the goal onto a plate for Pato, what must he be thinking about being dragged into these negative comments after showing him so much support (both in his assist and his comments for Pato post match).
Pato has acted like a spoilt child with these comments. Anyone can understand the frustration of not playing, but this isn't the way to deal with the situation. He should have spoken personally to Allegri first (something which he should be doing regularly to try and become the leaders he's expected to be in the side) and should that have no conclusion, he should have spoken to his agent and other members of the club (i.e. Galliani) privately to discuss what his future is at the club.
edit: Also, about what should be done with Pato, I think Galliani needs to take a hard and soft approach to this. He needs to be disciplined that this isn't acceptable behaviour and he could and should have handled the situation better. However, he should be reasoned with to help him understand how slow recovery will help him in the long term and when all is said and done, he's a valuable commodity at the club. At 23, he's still young and impulsive and therefore it's likely this is fairly easily resolved. If he's unreasonable and unwilling to listen, then there's little choice but to look at selling.
Now THAT is funny. 
