There are several players that are at risk of slipping down Ruben Amorim’s pecking order with displays like the one against Ferencvaros.

Calciomercato.com write that three clues add up to mean that we can say with certainty that Milan are not aiming to win the Europa League despite being one of the favourites, at least on paper. The defeats against Benfica, Bournemouth and Ferencvaros were determined by two factors.

A collective let-down

The first is the attitude of the squad’s key players and the inadequacy of several reserves. The dominant Adrien Rabiot, for example, seems to sink when the Europa League anthem is played. The Frenchman – captain on this occasion due to Mike Maignan’s suspension – wasn’t the only culprit, but was certainly the most obvious.

The thing squad assembled last summer by Gerry Cardinale, Amorim and the management features a strong starting eleven that can compete with anyone (as was the case in the derby), but at the same time lacks alternatives.

In several cases, it’s fair to say that the players aren’t up to the task. Filippo Terracciano’s role is emblematic: already rejected by the previous management, he remained with Milan at Amorim’s request.

His season included 45 poorly played minutes against Benfica before being substituted at half-time, a straight red card as a substitute against Salzburg, and a poor performance against Ferencvaros that drew boos from the crowd.

Doubts are also growing over Ardon Jashari, who – after a few performances that were at least adequate – continues to display obvious technical and tactical limitations. The money spent on him (over €30m) is leading many to run out of patience.

The excellent performances against RB Salzburg and Udinese seemed to have reintroduced a courageous and powerful version of Davide Bartesaghi to Milan, but the most recent test saw him revert to the flaws of last season in terms of personality and concentration.

Pervis Estupinan, on the other hand, seems to have completely disappeared from the radar, having remained on the bench for the entire match against Ferencvaros. The two left-backs have a lot of work to do, and this could influence some transfer choices too.