Despite a history filled with trophies and victories, AC Milan is in the midst of a giant rebuild. Will it be enough to win big this season?
There is no denying that the name AC Milan has been boldly written in the history books of football–both domestically and internationally. The Rossoneri–as they are fondly called–have for many years proved to be a thorn in the flesh of many other opponents.
However, the success of this trophy-laden San Siro side has been hugely dented in recent years. After the team won the Seria A title in 2011, the management had a big task at hand–replacing the ‘old legs’ with ‘new’ ones.
The brilliant Pippo Inzaghi, who was already 37 years old, needed to be effectively replaced; while the energetic midfield duo of Gennaro Gattuso (33 years) and Clarence Seedorf (35) were due for replacement.
Courtesy goal.com
The always-composed Andrea Pirlo left for Juventus at the start of the 2011-12 season (eventually leading his new team to the league title) and veteran stars Clarence Seedorf, Alessandro Nesta, Pippo Inzaghi, Gennaro Gattuso, Mark Van Bommel and Gianluca Zambrotta were also allowed to leave a year later.
Despite the exodus of players, AC Milan seemed to be doing alright after the exit of the linchpins. Milan reached the quarter finals of the Champions League and finished second in Serie A, which in itself was seen as an underachievement. Yet they still managed to snatch the SuperCoppa Italiana, which was their only silverware that season- a consolation one, you may want to say. Ibrahimovic, who was then a player of the Rossoneri, was the Serie A’s top scorer that season, netting 28 goals.
This left many fans thinking: Things were going to be better.
Unfortunately, the diminishing process of this great club had just begun!
In July 2012, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva (arguably the worlds best defender as at that time), departed for Paris Saint-Germain for a combined £49 million ($75 million).
“Without Thiago Silva and Alessandro Nesta, Milan have no reference points in defence. Ibrahimovic, meanwhile, wins you 10 games a season on his own. If I was Allegri (the then manager of the team), I’d have trouble sleeping”, former player and manager Caesare Maldini said; as reported by Football Italia.
Indeed, many AC Milan fans have had trouble sleeping in recent years.
The club managed to finish 3rd in its next season, but drastically slumped to 8th, 10th (their worst finish since 1997) and 7th positions respectively in the following seasons. Yet their struggles were not limited to domestic football alone–they also had big problems in the European competitions.
When the Rossoneri won their seventh European Cup in 2007, Milan were five ahead of Barcelona, and only two behind Real Madrid–but in the past few years, Real have extended their lead to four.
Courtesy youtube.com
In 2014, the Italian side failed to qualify for an European tourney for the first time in over a decade. In fact, the team failed to qualify for any European tournament for the three consecutive seasons. Truly, the red stripes on AC Milan’s famous shirts could no longer conceal the bleeding- there was fire on the mountain!
”We want to create a team which will last through the ages, with class, heart and style. Courageous at home and abroad. Spectacular and capable of winning international trophies. Remember, he who believes, wins,” said the charismatic 50-year-old Silvio Berlusconi, when he was unveiled as the new owner of the Rosonneri side.
Until recent years, he did quite the good job, winning 8 Serie A titles, 1 Coppa Italia, 7 Supercoppa Italia titles, 5 European Cup trophies , 5 UEFA Super Cup trophies, 2 Intercontinental Cup trophies and 1 Club World Cup trophy. But, it was high time someone else managed the club!
In April 2017, a heavy-hearted Berlusconi brought down the curtain on the most successful era an owner has ever seen in this game; whooping 29 trophies in 30 years! He sold the club to Rossoneri Sport Investment Lux in a £630m deal which saw the Chinese-led consortium take a 99.3% stake in the club.
Just a few months later, AC Milan fans had something to cheer about. The club qualified for the Europa League after a 3-0 beating of Bologna.
“We could have done better, but this is a new beginning. Now we have to work to aim a bit higher”, said manager Vincenzo Montella after the victory.
Maybe an Europa League qualification was not something to jubilate about–but for a team who have not played European football since the 2013-14 season, the celebration was worth it.
Just a few days into the summer transfer window and the resuscitation process began. One, two, three…ten major signings have been made so far by the Italian side. Add one more player…and a new football XI would have been bought by Milan!
The club has successfully made one of the best deals of the summer. Experienced defender Leonardo Bonucci joined the team from Juventus for just £35m.
Considering the inflated prices now experienced in the transfer market and the quality of the player, Bonucci was a bargain for Milan.
Other players like Mateo Musacchio, Franck Kessie, Andre Silva, Fabio Borini, Hakan Calhanoglu, Andrea Conti, Ricardo Rodriguez, Lucas Biglia and Antonio Donnarumma have also been added to the team
Last season, the Rossoneri’s final total spending was just over £23m. But, so far in this transfer window, they have spent an impressive £160m.
The Italian side’s chances of having a good 2017/18 season were boosted as Gianluigi Donnarumma, arguably the most promising goalkeeper in the world, agreed to sign a new five-year deal worth £5m-a-season.
Fans of the San Siro side will be right to expect a great season from their darling team that now seems to be perfectly mixed with the experience of both the old legs and the young ones. Make no mistake, the San Siro side is on her way back to the top.
Slowly, but surely, this is the beginning of a new era.
