Allegri Admits That Fantastic Four Could Feature Together On Saturday
Tim Fontenault@Tim_Fontenault
Correspondent ISeptember 10, 2010
AC Milan manager Massimiliano Allegri has confirmed that the newly dubbed "Fantastic Four" of Alexandre Pato, Ronaldinho, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and Robinho could all play together at some point in Saturday's match against newly promoted Cesena, but did not reveal if the four would start together or if one would be left on the bench.
Ibrahimovic joined Milan from Barcelona on August 28 while Robinho followed from Manchester City on August 31.
The arrival of the two players has seen Milan ticket sales surge, with now well over 50 thousand season tickets sold for the UEFA Champions League and about 30 thousand season tickets for the Italian Serie A.
The arrival has also quickly made people believe that Milan are now the favorites for the Scudetto this season, especially after the club's masterful performance in their opening 4-0 win over Lecce, which they played without either player.
Allegri, who made his official debut as Milan manager in the blowout, has been forced to deal with the obvious question: how does he cope with having four of the premier scorers in the league at his disposal?
"Ibrahimovic, Robinho, Ronaldinho and Pato could all feature at some point during the match," he told the press.
"They can all play together, but we need time to work on our modules. Ibrahimovic and Robinho complete a group that was already strong."
"Will Ibrahimovic play straight away? He is well and I think he will play from the start."
However, Allegri may want to consider using all four, as these are the wishes of owner Silvio Berlusconi. The Italian Prime Minister has sent a modest caveat, warning that both Carlo Ancelotti and Leonardo found themselves out of a job at Milan when his wishes were not met.
Cesena will likely prove a difficult opponent. The newly promoted club were the surprise of Round 1, holding Roma to a 0-0 draw in their first Serie A match in 19 years.
In other Milan roster news, Alessandro Nesta and Clarence Seedorf, who are both slightly banged up at the moment, will miss the Cesena match, but will return to the squad for the UEFA Champions League match on September 15 against French side AJ Auxerre.