After a long crossing of the desert for several years, AC Milan is back at the highest level and starts dreaming of the first Italian league title since 2011.
The year 2020 for AC Milan will have been full of twists and turns. After a complicated start to the 2019/2020 financial year, 10th in Serie A in mid-season, the Rossoneri recovered after the first confinement to conclude the season in the most beautiful way: 9 wins and 3 draws in 12 games and a sixth place at the end.
A superb second part of the season allowed Stefano Pioli to keep his place on the bench, supported by his locker room and by the club leaders. A choice that pays off since today, after 21 days of the championship, Milan are leaders and can dream of an improbable title.
The return of Zlatan, the trigger
To understand how in one year this Milan team was able to find the top of the table, we have to go back a year, to the winter of 2020 when a 38-year-old Swedish striker arrived from Los Angeles.
“Milan have regained their nobility with the return of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. It really was the trigger for the club, his arrival was an emotional shock for everyone, positively speaking,” explains Guillaume Maillard-Pacini, a journalist for Eurosport and specialist in the Italian championship. “His mentality, his work culture, his winning.
He put everything at the service of a very young team (24.5 years old on average) and with his arrival everyone has raised their level ”. In addition to being a leader on and off the pitch, the former PSG scorer continues to perform well despite his 39 years: 14 goals in 11 league games played.
A team that one could imagine being dependent on the Swedish international, but not that much. This season, Zlatan has missed 15 games in total, due to injuries and Covid-19, and out of those 15 games, there is only one defeat and that was against Juventus on January 6 in the league.
Pioli, the “Normal One” become special
At the head of this team, there is also a coach who comes out of nowhere, or almost. Stefano Pioli arrived in Lombardy in October 2019 in indifference, with a virgin record and many failures at Inter or Fiorentina in particular.
“It is true that he has not had great success in his career, in Italy he is nicknamed the Normal One, but he is a very quiet person, who does not make waves, he is adapting a lot to his group and this group appreciates him and had done everything last season to keep him on the bench.
He is really someone who is very close to his players, especially since the death of Davide Astori, whom he knew at Fiorentina and who marked him deeply ”.
A technician who could have never known this magnificent 2020/2021 season. Before the first confinement in March 2020, the Milan leaders had completed the arrival of Ralf Rangnick as manager of the club.
An arrival which was supposed to initiate a new project based on the long term at San Siro, as the German coach had been able to do in Leipzig. But ultimately the excellent end of last season convinced Maldini and Massara to extend Pioli.
Besides the results, AC Milan are also developing a real style of play this season. “It’s a modern, playful team that is moving forward, and which is really pleasant to watch, which wants to have fun.
It’s a nice mix of fun, youth, and experience ”, describes Guillaume Maillard-Pacini. With his 4-2-3-1, Pioli can count on many strong men and experiences like Simon Kjaer, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, young people with a strong potential with Rafael Leao, Alexis Saelemaekers, Jens Petter Hauge, and more players. confirmed who find an excellent level: Davide Calabria, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Alessio Romagnoli, Franck Kessié, Ismael Bennacer, or Hakan Calhanoglu.
Can AC Milan win Serie A this season?
This is a question that we can logically ask in view of the current season. With 17 games still to go, Juventus having a very complicated season, and Napoli, Atalanta, Roma and Lazio left behind, fans can dream of another national triumph, 10 years after the last championship won.“The goal of the leaders is to qualify for the Champions League.
Financially speaking it would be very good for the club. For me, Inter remain favorites for the title because the club are eliminated from the Champions League and the Italian Cup, they only have that left.
Antonio Conte came for that too, he earns 12 million euros a year, so it’s also a form of obligation. We must also be careful of Juventus who can still believe in it. But yes, Milan can play for the title, even if that’s not the goal. There is also the Europa League to play so the objective is the Champions League ”.
On the side of Italy and Lombardy, we believe in it. “Even though it will be very difficult to keep up the pace in the next few months, I think Milan will win the Scudetto.
Milan has achieved impressive results since March last year. Milan is having a great season and is in first place for their own merit and not for the demerit of other clubs like Juventus, which are not having a great season. I think they will ultimately be Italian champions, ” says Louis Girardi, a journalist for Pianeta Milan.
Whatever happens this season, the Rossoneri will still face a big job in the months to come. Many important players are at the end of their contracts this summer:
Zlatan, Mandzukic, Donnarumma, Calhanoglu, but also next year: Kessie, Calabria, Romagnoli, whose contracts end in June 2022. As revealed by the “Gazzetta Dello Sport “ today, the Lombard leaders are working on these contract extensions, the club’s priority.
