Damien Venuto
AC Milan have recently taken on the identity of a manic depressive, with every up coupled with a worse or equivalent down. Kaká not going to Manchester City is met with fresh rumours about Real Madrid. Beating Inter Milan is followed by a disastrous performance against an indisputably superior Juventus. Carlo Ancelotti needs to find medication which can return the balance of consistency to the club. The coach’s grey hair has become more conspicuous than ever and the Rossoneri’s fans are desperate for silverware.
The Champions League will not save the Red and Blacks this season and it is questionable whether the UEFA Cup has enough prestige to keep jeers and whistles at bay. Last season Milan had a dismal home record, often attributed to the dissatisfaction of the San Siro crowd. The pressure of playing under the burden of constant expectation left the wide array of champions on the field underperforming consistently and the Giuseppe Meazza lost its reputation as a proverbial fortress in the footballing world. Images of Kaká and Gatusso demanding the support of an audience in a packed stadium as Milan crushed Manchester United were forgotten. The names Adebayor and Fabregas have replaced those good memories leaving a strong yearning in the hearts of supporters.
When the club failed to qualify for the 2008/2009 Champions League the Scudetto became paramount, especially since Inter Milan had won the title for three consecutive seasons. Milan are currently languishing in third and do not look capable of stopping Inter from making it four in a row. As the season progresses it is not far-fetched to see the Diavolo’s fans keeping a closer eye on Juventus’s results as they mutter “any team but Inter”. Milan are well off the pace in the league and continue to drop points unnecessarily. The problems of last season are still prevalent and the new acquisitions seem to offer little reprise. In fact, some of them are actually contributing to current instability.
As soon as the controversy of the Manchester City debacle was resolved, Emerson and David Beckham both suggested that Kaká would more than likely leave for Real Madrid in the summer. Stability continues to evade Milan even after the cloud of an unsettling £100M offer has dissipated. Emerson has never been a very valuable addition to the club, but Beckham seems to be adjusting quite well to his new team. The other new arrivals have been reasonably successful. Ronaldinho has had inspirational moments such as his comeback free kick in the Portsmouth UEFA Cup match, and he seems very content as a member of a Brazilian dominated frontline. The team and the fans all seem to share a very amicable relationship with the Brazilian star, but the same cannot always be said of Ancelotti.
When the two-time World Player of the Year was substituted during the Roma game he was less than impressed. His facial expressions told a story reminiscent of his time spent under the command of Frank Rijkaard. The decision to substitute Ronaldinho proved dubious as the Giallorossi equalised within minutes of his departure.
Having said this, one does not envy the job Ancelotti has at the moment. It seems impossible to imagine a game in which Seedorf, Pirlo, Beckham, Kaká, Flamini and Ronaldinho could all play together in midfield. Against Fiorentina, Ronaldinho was once again sacrificed in favour of Ambrosini, and Frenchman Flamini seems to be taking on the role of the white elephant once again, with his game time limited to the Italian Cup (a competition Milan have been eliminated from) or sometimes as a Serie A substitute. The ex-Arsenal midfielder will not be able to endure this indefinitely and itchy feet are almost inevitable on his part, with a departure to England and the Premier League a possible escape route.
Indeed, young French players seem to be given the cold shoulder quite frequently in the Italian fashion capital. Many heads are currently shaking at the departure of Yoann Gourcuff to Bordeaux, who, with 11 goals so far, could certainly have benefited the Milanese cause this season. The problem with Gourcuff was the lack of space for him in the midfield, because of Kaká, a situation unlikely to improve even if he should return from his loan spell with the Ligue 1 side.
Milan 03/04 Away Shirt MALDINI **Match Worn**
The Milan faithful should turn their heads and read no further; this discussion will now digress and venture into controversial territory. £100M is an excessive amount, and with the departure of Kaká would have come a massive change in the financial situation at the San Siro. It would also have provided a rising Gourcuff with a position in the team. The money could then be utilised to rectify the real problem area of the Rossoneri, the defence.
Defensively the team requires a makeover. Maldini (God bless his soul) needs to play less, if at all, and whilst Kaladze and Bonera are solid, they are not Nesta, who, if he returns from injury is unlikely to be the same player. The Frenchman Senderos cannot be looked to either as he is accident prone and not a suitable substitute for any of these players. The proposed £100M fee would certainly help Milan in the search for two new centre-backs and suddenly the heart of the defence could be transformed.
The full-backs, Jankulovski and Zambrotta, are good, but they are moving into the twilight years of their respective careers quite quickly. Antonini has shown his worth, but it is questionable whether he will be sufficiently matured by next season. Milan need to make some drastic changes if they are to become good enough defensively, especially when Champions League football returns to the San Siro next season. A player of the calibre of John Terry, Rio Ferdinand, or, if one exists, a younger Paolo Maldini or a fully recovered Alessandro Nesta would resolve some of Milan’s defensive concerns.
This is all very easy to say but almost impossible to reasonably hypothesize. Even in Italy young defenders are almost as difficult to discover as capable goalkeepers. With this being said perhaps £100M would be superfluous. There are very few young defenders with the potential Milan have become accustomed to having at their disposal in the last decade, and when the large persistent hands of Real Madrid come knocking, the floor under Milanese feet will once again tremor unstably as carrots are dangled in front of Kaká. Perhaps they should snatch at the carrot this time and give Gourcuff his chance to shine. When he does start to shine Manchester City will probably offer him a blank cheque and instability will just return to the Red and Blacks again.
The antidote to Milan’s manic depressive state seems elusive. It seems pandemic in football at the moment as even larger clubs are being afflicted by the uncertainties of the times. In the past only smaller clubs suffered due to the advances of larger clubs, today diminutive clubs like Manchester City are causing incurable headaches for powerhouses like Milan. Coaches like Ancelotti can expect a few more grey hairs and fans can expect far more disappointments. The bottom line is that there are not enough players like Francesco Totti or Paolo Maldini to stand against football’s dependence on economics in the modern age.
Milan 08/09 Away Shirt BECKHAM Milan 08/09 Third Shirt PATO
