AC Milan players sequestered at training ground after poor run of results

By Andrew Cesare Richardson, ESPN writer

With Milan’s season spiraling toward disaster, Gab Marcotti examines Gennaro Gattuso’s future and whether Antonio Conte is waiting in the wings.

A loss leaves free falling Milan two points off Roma for fourth and level with Torino, who announced themselves as top four contenders with the win.

AC Milan’s players will spend the next five days sequestered at the club’s training centre after Gennaro Gattuso ordered a ritiro, as their place in next season’s Champions League is in serious jeopardy.

The decision will see the entire squad stay in the Milanello training ground until the next Serie A match, which is at home to 14th-place Bologna on Monday.

A disappointing run or results has led to intense speculation manager Gennaro Gattuso will leave his post before the start of next season.

Milan had been on a run of five-straight Serie A victories going into March’s local derby against Inter where a win would have seen them climb above their neighbours and into third place.

However, they were beaten 3-2 and have registered just one victory in the six subsequent league matches — with Sunday’s 2-0 defeat top four rivals Torino seeing them drop to sixth.

Meanwhile, they were also beaten by Lazio in the Coppa Italia semifinals.

Antonio Conte, who has been mooted as a potential replacement for Gattuso at Milan, was in the stands for the defeat at Torino.

A ritiro is a fairly common reaction to a poor run of form in Serie A. Roma were on lockdown in December, while Inter Milan underwent the same process after a poor run of form in April.

This article was originally published by Espnfc.com. Read the original article here.