Having established himself as a pivotal figure in the Milan side since his arrival, Theo Hernandez’s recent malaise has become an obvious detriment to our pursuit of success.
Such has been the quality and improvement from the 23-year-old over the past year, he has undoubtedly become a pillar of our starting XI.
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Whether it’s his marauding runs forward to offer an attacking threat down the left flank or his improving defensive skills, he has made that position his own and he has put himself in the conversation as one of the best left-backs in Europe.
However, the fact that he hasn’t provided a goal or an assist in his last seven Serie A appearances is one thing, but it’s the overall drop in his influence on games that is perhaps the bigger concern.
It may well be just a dip and a struggle for consistency, or perhaps the shin injury he sustained last month is lingering and he isn’t quite at his peak still.
Nevertheless, as his sloppy mistake at the weekend showed in gifting possession to Sampdoria for the opening goal of the game, he isn’t meeting the same high standards that he has set previously.
This is by no means a piece suggesting that he has been terrible. His form has been decent. However, if he wants to be regarded as the best in his position and if he wants to continue to be a focal point in this side, he has to do better than what we’ve seen in recent weeks.
The sloppiness in possession isn’t new, it has been on display in a few games and the difference this time was that he was punished for it. Further, his inability to pick out the best option when he breaks forward, as his snub of Hakan Calhanoglu showed against Samp when the Turkish playmaker was in a great spot to score on a counter attack, is also hurting us.
It’s possibly easier to be more critical of someone like Hernandez when he does fall short of his usual high standard as he is so important to the team in terms of the tempo, quality and attacking threat that he brings to the side.
Milan ultimately need the Theo we’ve seen for the best part of nearly two years now who is all-action, intense and a freight train down the left flank with his attacking quality. If he can get back to that, pair it with more consistency in defence by cutting out the mistakes, we’ll get a huge lift from him heading into a decisive period for the club over the next nine games.
