Amorim Addresses Maignan and Rabiot Ahead of Torino Opener

Ruben Amorim didn’t wait for the storm to build. He walked straight into it.

Questions had begun to swirl around Milan after Mike Maignan and Adrien Rabiot missed the final stages of pre-season, including the eye-catching 4-2 win over Manchester United in Poland. With the league opener against Torino looming, the narrative was writing itself: were Milan’s French stars behind schedule? Were they calling the shots on their own holidays?

Amorim cut that talk off at the source.

“Rabiot and Maignan had more days off because they played more. That was important to me,” the Milan coach said after dismantling his former club. “Everyone complains about the number of games and the players being unable to cope with the strain, and I gave the players those extra days because I already knew they wouldn’t be able to play today’s match. So I gave them three more days. Nothing will change. And I need to say that it was my decision, not the players.”

No room for interpretation there. The coach took full ownership.

Tailored return for Milan’s French core

The timeline has been clear inside Milanello, even if the noise outside hasn’t. Maignan and Rabiot reported back to the training ground on Sunday morning, straight into a battery of fitness tests and physiological checks designed to measure how hard they had worked during their break.

While the rest of the squad enjoyed a recovery day after the trip back from Poland, the two French internationals were put on a specific program, built to close the gap in match sharpness without overloading them in the final week before Serie A kicks off.

From Milanello, the plan is already mapped out: a rest day on Monday, then full-contact training with the group from Tuesday. For the first time this summer, Amorim expects to have his entire first-team squad together on the grass. He views that moment as a key step in locking in the tactical details he wants in place before Torino arrive.

The message behind the extra three days off is simple: think beyond August.

By easing Maignan and Rabiot back now, Amorim believes he is protecting their legs for the decisive stretch of the season, the heavy months of February and March when tired squads crack and titles are often decided. He stressed that both players were pushing to return sooner, but he chose to be the one to say no.

“They want to train. Tomorrow they’ll be at Milanello preparing for the first match,” he said. “They had a full schedule and followed the schedule, because we have proof that they did. So I want to make this really clear, because I think it’s important. We’ll evaluate Rabiot. Rabiot is a really important player for us. But, as we showed today, we have to be confident. We need to rest the players who need rest because it will be a very demanding season.”

That last line is the crux of it. Rotation isn’t a luxury for Amorim; it’s policy.

Maignan set to start, Rabiot under evaluation

If there was any doubt about Maignan’s status for the opener, Amorim removed that as well. The goalkeeper, he underlined, is a special case.

“It’s a different position. He’s been training all the time,” the coach explained. “If you look at the number of games he’s played in recent seasons with Milan, he plays every game. He’ll be ready for the first match because it’s a different position.”

Maignan, then, is expected to walk straight back into the XI against Torino, his rhythm and consistency giving Amorim enough security to start him without a pre-season appearance in Poland.

Rabiot’s situation is more nuanced. The midfielder is central to Amorim’s plans, but the staff will assess his condition across this week’s sessions before deciding whether he starts or is eased in from the bench. The performance against United, with Milan hitting four past Premier League opposition without him, has at least given the coach evidence that his system can function and thrive even when a cornerstone is missing.

The 4-2 win in Poland injected belief and noise into Milan’s camp. Amorim’s handling of Maignan and Rabiot shows he wants that energy carried into the league, but not at the cost of burning out his key players before the real grind begins.

Torino will provide the first real measure of whether this calculated gamble on rest, rhythm, and responsibility pays off.