Journalist Monica Colombo, who first reported the story in Corriere della Sera, expanded on the details in an interview with the Milan Vibes YouTube channel, presenting a picture of a club fractured along internal fault lines.
"Everything that is happening around Milan is rather turbulent. The squad environment has inevitably been shaken by the various internal tensions. What is happening is that Milan is splitting into currents. While results were useful, the dust had been swept under the carpet, but old tensions resurfaced at the first opportunity."
On the specific breakdown between Allegri and Ibrahimović.
"From what I can establish, Ibrahimović has not been seen in the dressing rooms at San Siro or at Milanello for three months. For the situation to be resolved there would need to be a direct confrontation between him and Allegri, which in recent times has never happened. At this moment the two are not speaking, and continuing this way is not possible."
The immediate trigger was a dispute in early April over the selection of next season's third-choice goalkeeper, following Milan's 1-0 defeat to Napoli on April 6. But Colombo was explicit that the goalkeeper disagreement was merely the pretext for a deeper rupture.
"There was a breaking point over the choice of third goalkeeper for next season, but it was only an excuse to bring old tensions back to the surface."
Two other episodes proved more damaging. Allegri learned that Ibrahimović had been in regular contact with Antonio Cassano, a vocal and persistent critic of the Rossoneri and of Allegri's approach specifically, through Cassano's popular Twitch programme.
"When Allegri found out about the contacts with Cassano, this did not help."
More seriously, Ibrahimović is alleged to have contacted Youssouf Fofana and Rafael Leão directly, offering them tactical advice that contradicted Allegri's instructions in training.
"Ibrahimović contacted Fofana and Leão, giving them tactical advice different from those given by the coach in training. This did not help either."
Allegri was also denied the reinforcements he requested in January, with the club citing financial constraints. Shortly afterwards, €30 million was made available for the signing of Jean-Philippe Mateta — a deal handled by chief executive Giorgio Furlani without the knowledge of sporting director Igli Tare or Allegri himself.
Milan sit fourth in Serie A with two games remaining, level on points with Roma and two above Como, in a three-way fight for the final Champions League place. Allegri is reported to be seriously considering the Italy national team head coach role if it becomes available — a prospect that has moved closer given the FIGC's dissatisfaction with Gennaro Gattuso after Italy's failure to qualify for the World Cup.