Wenger has faith in Allegri
Arsenal's Arsene Wenger believes that AC Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri should be given time to turn the results around after losing key players over the summer.
By ESPNSTAR.com staff
The Rossoneri are 12 points behind league leaders Juventus and Napoli and have already suffered three defeats so far. The Serie A runner-ups from last season have been criticised heavily from all quarters and Allegri's position as coach has been put under intense scrutiny.
Reports in the Italian media recently have indicated that vice-president Adriano Galliani is looking for a replacement and he was spotted flying to New York to talk to former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola. Guardiola's representatives, however, denied that he was considering a return to football and brushed off the meeting as being purely a personal one between the two individuals.
Milan have lost Thiago Silva, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Adriano Cassano and have also seen veteran players such as Filippo Inzaghi, Gianluca Zambrotta, Clarence Seedorf, Mark van Bommel, Gennaro Gattuso and Alessandro Nesta end their association with the club over the summer.
In contrast to Milan, Arsenal have started their new campaign on a much more of a positive note although a defeat to pace-setters Chelsea on September 29 has put them back in the Premier League. But the Frenchman is busy grooming his squad to recover from the loss of Dutch hitman Robin van Persie and has had extensive experience of leading them in periods of transition when the likes of Thierry Henry, Cesc Fabregas, Emmanuel Adebayor, Samir Nasri and Kolo Toure chose to exit the club.
And Wenger feels that Allegri, despite having to endure a heavy depletion of his first-team squad, does have the man-management capabilities required to bring the best out of the side and ensure that the team remains a heavyweight in Italian football.
"It is clear for all to see that things are not going well at Milan. However, it is crucial that they retain their faith in Allegri," Wenger told Eurosport.
"It is only normal that he needs time to rebuild the team after the departure of players like Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
"The two Milan teams appear to be less strong than we've come to get used to in recent years, but that's down to the economic crisis."
Milan have a tough match against Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico on Saturday. Prior to the international break, they also suffered an agonising 1-0 loss to arch-rivals Inter Milan.