Marcel Desailly, Jean-Pierre Papin, Philippe Mexès, Jérémy Ménez, Adil Rami, Christophe Dugarry, Yoann Gourcuff… The list of French people who have played for AC Milan is as long as your arm, but the current density has probably only few equivalents in the past. If we put aside Tiémoué Bakayoko and Yacine Adli, who played very little in Serie A and not at all in the Champions League, the other four – Mike Maignan, Theo Hernandez, Olivier Giroud and Pierre Kalulu, are essential parts of the Rossoneri . Coach Stefano Pioli will rely heavily on his French this Tuesday evening to make up for the two-goal deficit conceded in the Champions League semi-final first leg against neighbors Inter.
This “French connection” has not escaped internal coach Simone Inzaghi. Monday, at a press conference, the technician thus forged the link of himself between the referee, the Frenchman Clément Turpin, and the tricolor colony of AC Milan. “Many friends and acquaintances from the world of football have informed me of the appointment of a French referee with Milan, which has four (French) players. “A remark in the tone of the joke since he clarified: “there is not the slightest problem, we have total confidence”.
That being said, Inzaghi’s witticism brings us back to this question: why does AC Milan set its sights on French players? The first explanation lies in the identity of the club’s chief recruiter, Geoffrey Moncada, far from being innocent in the emergence of this French-speaking diaspora. He has been in post in the fashion capital of the world since 2018, after eight seasons at AS Monaco. He therefore has a real sensitivity for Ligue 1. The other explanation is obviously the sporting value of the players concerned.
Maignan “made people forget” Donnarumma
Among these, the Blues goalkeeper Mike Maignan has been unanimous since his arrival in 2021. “He made Gianluigi Donnarumma forget,” insists Massimo Franchi, journalist at Tuttosport. His importance in the workforce was glaring at the time of his calf injury this season. In October 2022, when the former Lille player was in the infirmary, the Milanese notably lost their two Champions League matches against Chelsea, conceding five goals in total (3-0 and 2-0). Conversely, when he is there, it is felt.
Against Naples, in the quarter-final first leg of the Champions League, Maignan retained the advantage of his team (1-0) by performing a spectacular save at the very end of the match against Di Lorenzo. On the return, it was on a penalty that he disgusted the Neapolitans, stopping that of Kvaratskhelia. And without him to go against Inter, the note could even have been even saltier.
Theo Hernandez, he “is an idol” according to Massimo Franchi. The side, arrived in 2019 in Lombardy, is even vice-captain. He regularly wears the armband, when Pierre Kalulu, the other Frenchman who goes up to Milan, is preferred to Calabria in the right lane. The former Atletico Madrid player has only been benched twice when he was available this season and his statistical contribution is still significant (4 goals and 5 assists in all competitions).
Olivier Giroud has the confidence of Stefano Pioli to occupy the forefront of the attack, even if he has not scored since March 13, against Salernitana. But he still holds a special place in the hearts of the supporters and “his ease in learning Italian quickly helped a lot with that”, says Franchi.
Despite everything, French is indeed the second language of the AC Milan locker room. The Franco-Algerian Ismaël Bennacer, the Franco-Senegalese Fodé Ballo-Touré or the Belgians Alexis Saelemaekers and Divock Origi also speak the language of Molière. No offense to Simone Inzaghi, it would not be surprising to hear French spoken, this Tuesday evening, on the lawn of San Siro.
