AC Milan Legends Criticise Players as ‘Immature and Reckless’ Following Champions League Exit

AC Milan are nursing the wounds of a self-inflicted exit from the Champions League, following a disheartening defeat to Feyenoord that has further darkened an already troubled season.

The seven-time European champions now have the Italian Cup and a top-four finish as their remaining goals after an inexplicable exit at the playoff stage, largely attributed to Theo Hernandez’s reckless red card.

Milan appeared to be in control during Tuesday night’s encounter at the San Siro until the 51st minute, when Hernandez took a tumble in the penalty area, despite not being challenged by Givairo Read.

The French full-back, who had earlier struck the post, was already on a yellow card for a needless foul on Anis Hadj-Moussa just before half-time, prompting referee Szymon Marciniak to promptly issue a second yellow.

This dismissal drastically altered the flow of the match, as a previously energetic home crowd, uplifted by Santiago Gimenez scoring his third goal against Milan just 36 seconds in, descended into stunned silence when Julian Carranza powered in a header to secure a 2-1 aggregate victory for Feyenoord.

“With a bit of luck, we could have gone two goals up in the first half, and we started the second half well, but the game turned when we went down to ten men,” Zlatan Ibrahimovic, advisor to the club’s owners RedBird, told broadcaster Sky.

“We’re angry with ourselves; we lost the match. It’s not that our opponents were better than us; it’s like we committed footballing suicide,” he expressed.

At the San Siro, Milan’s elimination was met with a disheartening atmosphere of apathy, as fans filed out silently without the usual boos or cheers in a failed attempt to overturn the one-goal deficit from the first leg.

Amid the muted response from the home support, Feyenoord’s fans celebrated their unexpected advancement to face either Arsenal or Milan’s city rivals, Inter, in the next round.

Hernandez branded ‘irresponsible’

Back in the Sky studios across town, Milan legends Zvonomir Boban, Alessandro Costacurta, and Fabio Capello didn’t hold back in their criticism of Hernandez, describing his actions as “irresponsible” and “childish.”

A furious Boban, who enjoyed success with three Serie A titles and the 1994 Champions League under Capello at Milan, delivered the harshest words, labelling Hernandez’s bookings as “absurd” and “irresponsible,” and called him a cheat.

“This is how he’ll learn, as he’s been diving for years,” Boban fumed. “With VAR in play, if you cheat, it will be caught. What’s the point? Just play the game. Such behaviour is unacceptable even in a casual match among friends on a Thursday night.”

Boban’s comments encapsulated the mounting frustration among Milan supporters this season, as home matches often feature chants aimed at RedBird founder Gerry Cardinale while the team trails 15 points behind Serie A leaders Napoli.

In reality, Milan should have avoided the playoffs altogether, having been in one of the eight automatic last-16 spots with one match still left in the league phase at eliminated Dinamo Zagreb.

A victory in Croatia would have spared Milan the playoff scenario, but disaster struck there as well, with Yunus Musah receiving a red card late in the first half and Sergio Conceicao’s side suffering a dismal 2-1 defeat.

Conceicao now faces the daunting task of steering Milan back into next year’s competition, as they currently sit seventh in Serie A, five points adrift of the top four, albeit with a game in hand.