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AC Milan: What have the Rossoneri done in the market to mount a title challenge?

  By O-Posts Team | July 28, 2024 - 14:59 | , , ,
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Who have AC Milan bought so far?

With a heavy reliance on Jeremy Menez who was the top scorer last season on 16 goals – the club have reinforced the attacking department. They have all but signed Carlos Bacca and officially purchased Luiz Adriano from Porto – these forwards have a reported combined transfer fee of 38 million Euros.

I think purchasing these two strikers shows a great statement of intent to climb back to the top of Italian football. Both are proven European goal scorers and were sought after by many leading clubs across Europe – they should certainly add some firepower.

Another notable signing is Andrea Bertolacci. Milan signed the 24-year-old midfielder from AS Roma this summer for a hefty 20 million Euros. Bertolacci impressed during his loan stint at Genoa last season, scoring seven goals and registering eight assists.

Signing Bertolacci should inject much-needed creativity into Milan’s midfield. He can play from a central or advanced position, a deeper playmaker or No.10. It’s refreshing to see a young Italian player move to clubs in Serie A for such a fee, in fact, it’s always refreshing to see big clubs like AC Milan investing in home grown players - It can only be a positive for the national team.

A couple of other midfielders who have come into Siniša Mihajlović’s side are Mauri (free from Parma) and Simone Verdi from Torino.

Mauri could prove to be a shroud signing should he be given the opportunity to perform, he was a bright light from Parma’s disastrous campaign last year.

 

Where do they need to strengthen?

CEO Adriano Galliani’s focus should now turn to reinforcing the defence. Last season, the side shipped an astonishing 50 goals.

Here is a list of AC Milan’s defenders; Mattia De Sciglio (full back), Philippe Mexès (centre back), Cristián Zapata (centre back), Ignazio Abate (full back), Gabriel Paletta (centre back) Luca Antonelli (full back), Alex (centre back), Christian Zaccardo (full back).

From that selection, I think Ignazio Abate, Luca Antonelli and Gabriel Paletta are worth keeping.

Mattia De Sciglio is yet to live up to his full potential and would benefit with a loan away to a smaller club in a less pressured environment. Philippe Mexes is a loose cannon and should have been sold a long time ago – but bizarrely, the club offered him a one-year contract extension.

Cristian Zapata is not good enough tactically, his positioning at times last season was woeful. Alex hasn’t convinced me, he was great at Chelsea – downhill ever since he left for PSG. Christian Zaccardo is 34 and inconsistent.

The club need to sign a couple of centre backs and a couple of full backs, but realistically, that will not happen this summer. But hopefully for the rossoneri fans, a world-class defender will come in.

Stars such as Mats Hummels or Diego Godin would be excellent, but with no Champions League football, there is virtually no chance.

 

So, who are realistic purchases?

The club has been linked with Roma’s defender Alessio Romagnoli, who had an outstanding season on loan at Sampdoria. Milan submitted a bid of 25 million Euros this month, which was rejected as Roma demanded more.

It’s unsure whether the club will submit a higher bid, but at 20-years of age, he could be the answer to Milan future defence.

Another defender linked with the club was Monaco’s Aymen Abdennour. He is highly sought after this summer following an impressive Champions League campaign last term.

I think he would be a brilliant acquisition, but the purchase of the Tunisian centre back was ruled out because the club cannot fit any more non-European Union players into their team following the acquisition of Carlos Bacca and Luiz Adriano. Such a shame.

There is still a long way to go in the transfer market, but it’s best to act fast with pre-season now well underway - the defence should be the priority.

 

Written by Serie A Writer

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Carlos Bacca: Highly-rated Sevilla star on his way to AC Milan

  By O-Posts Team | July 13, 2024 - 16:45 | , , , , , , , ,
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AC Milan announced last month that they have reached an agreement to sign Sevilla striker Carlos Bacca, subject to a medical.

The Italian giants met the buyout clause in his contract that is reported to be set at €30 million.

Let’s take a closer look at the 28-year-old Colombian.

 

 

Background

  • When he was 20 years old, Carlos was in his hometown of Puerto Colombia on the Caribbean coast. He played football for the local team and had to juggle two jobs to help with the family income – he sold fish and worked as a bus conductor.
  • He turned professional when he was 22, joining Colombian side Atletico Junior.
  • Bacca moved to Europe in 2012 with Belgian side Club Brugge, putting pen to paper on a 3 year contract worth €1.5 million for his services.
  • Sevilla liked what they saw and bought him for €7 million. He was originally purchased as a squad filler, but soon solidified himself as a recognized threat up top, helping the Spanish outfit to back-to-back Europa League trophies.
  • Bacca scored 49 in 108 games for Sevilla, including 28 in all competitions last season- including 2 goals in the Europa League final versus Dnipro.

 

 

What can he offer AC Milan?

The Rossoneri’s physical presence up front has been lacking, probably ever since the departure Mario Balotelli last summer. The defences in Serie A had nothing to be frightened of - apart from Jeremy Menez who managed to bag 16 league goals.

Bacca has a robust nature about him, an element AC Milan certainly missed last year. A key strength is his movement, his ability to draw defenders then exploit the space in behind has become one of his signature moves.

Adept at leading the line, or dropping deep to receive the ball before driving deep into the heart of enemy territory, Bacca keeps defences on their toes for the full 90 minutes.

AC Milan didn’t splash the cash just for his work rate, the Colombian should offer plenty of goals to Sinisa Mihajlovic’s men too.

Bacca scored his 20 goals from just 59 shots last season, meaning he maintained a conversion rate of nearly 34% - scoring with more than one in every three shots. That rate was the best of all attackers in La Liga last season – significantly better than Ronaldo, Messi and Neymar.

With this work rate and intelligence along with a deadly eye for goal, he is certainly a striker to be feared and could be an instant hit in Serie A.

 

Written by Serie A Writer

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Jackson Martinez: What can the highly-rated goal-getter offer to AC Milan

  By O-Posts Team | June 15, 2024 - 16:16 | , , , , , ,
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Porto’s Colombian striker Jackson Martínez has agreed to join AC Milan, FC Porto’s president, Pinto da Costa confirmed last week.

“I learned just now that Jackson has chosen Milan. This is what he wants, the destination is irrelevant as far as I am concerned. I want him to be happy.”

The Rossoneri look set to beat a host of potential suitors, which included the likes of Arsenal and Manchester City.

Here is a deeper look at the 28 year old who will cost the Italian giants €35m.

 

Background

Jackson Martinez, full name - Jackson Arley Martinez Valencia was born in Quibdo, Colombia. His career began with first division side Independiente Medellín.

The year 2009 was his standout season when he became the top goalscorer for the season, netting 18 times. That form earned him a move to a Mexico to compete in a better league - He joined Liga MX side Chiapas.

Jackson had a successful 3 year stay in Mexico, he scored 28 goals in 58 games and was named captain in 2012. His performances were noticed across Europe and FC Porto signed him for US $11 million.

Martinez has scored an impressive 92 goals in 133 appearances for the Portuguese side, winning the title in 2012-13 and a couple of domestic cups since.

He netted an impressive total of 28 goals in league and Champions League matches last season.

 

What can he offer AC Milan?

For Milan, it’s a purchase that represents a major statement of intent. The Italian giants have fallen in recent years, dropping out of contention for league titles and failing to qualify for Europe in consecutive seasons - mainly due to their financial constraints. With investment due to arrive from China, the side need to show Italy and the world that they are serious to compete once again.

The capture of a player with the calibre of Martinez represents a timely dose of renewed ambition. Milan have been lacking attacking presence since the departure of Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Martinez should give this team a physical presence at the point of the attack, he is a wonderful target man and a brilliant technician. His physical characteristics are the typical features of a “classic” center-forward in a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 formation, but he’s much more than this kind of player.

He has a great feel for the game and he’s a better passer than he’d seem at first sight (14 assists in 3 years), so that makes him a great fit as a second striker - or even CAM - in a 4-3-1-2 or 4-4-2 formation.

Last season in Serie A, Milan’s forwards (Menez, Pazzini, Cerci and El Shaarawy) registered a combined 24 goals. Martinez alone scored 21 league goals and a further 7 in the Champions League.

He is approaching his 29th birthday, therefore with his high fee, he will be expected to perform well at the San Siro. Should he bring his goal scoring form to Milan, the forward is the kind of character who will quickly be adored by the fans.

 

Written by Serie A Writer

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AC Milan: What’s the main reason behind their perplexing demise?

  By O-Posts Team | May 2, 2024 - 18:14 | , ,
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AC Milan are closer to the bottom of the table than the top and will miss out on European football for a second consecutive season. Midweek, Filippo Inzaghi and his men suffered yet another defeat, their tenth of the season -this time at home to Genoa (3-1). Milan also sit tenth in the standings. It’s simply not good enough.

The Rossoneri’s demise has been extensively covered by the media, with many neutrals still perplexed as to what the hell is going on with the eighteen times Scudetto winners and seven times Champions League winners. It’s clear that the supports have had enough, they gathered together in tightly choreographed ranks until they resembled the word ‘Basta’, which means ‘enough’.

There are a host of on the field issues at the club, but I think the big problem is the ownership.

It’s been widely reported that owner Silvio Berlusconi is considering selling the club. I ask, how can a side push forward under an owner who no longer wants to operate at the club, it can’t be easy - players, management and general staff have uncertain futures.

However, Berlusconi leaving the club is a good thing; AC Milan are in need of fresh ideas from higher up the hierarchy, and more importantly, funds.

Silvio Berlusconi has now lived long enough to see himself become the villain at the club he took over in 1986. Yes, under his ownership, Milan have had the most successful period of their history. Berlusconi saved the Italian giants from near bankruptcy.

Recently, he has not invested enough, due to the struggling investments of other personal ventures. His holding company Fininvest is bleeding money. They had to sell 92 million shares of Italian broadcaster Mediaset - a host of corruption scandals certainly doesn’t help either.

The club has debts of around €250m and lost €91.3m in 2014. This is mainly due to the club missing out on European football.

So, who is in line to take over? There are two men emerging as the finalists in the race. One of them is Thai businessman Bee Taechaubol and the other Hong Kong entrepreneur Richard Lee.

It has been heavily reported within the last few days that Mr Bee of Thailand is the favourite. The businessman flew in last week to watch the side and meet with Silvio Berlusconi. Taechaubol’s group is said to be offering €500m for somewhere between 51% and 60% of the club.

The Milan faithful certainly want a deal to go through. The club’s Ultras, the Curva Sud, wrote an open letter to the management, which is rather touching;

“It seemed impossible, but we’ve reached a historic turning point for our Milan, our President, who bought the club in a courtroom, and just three years later gave us the joy of winning the third European Cup in our history, who helped us win that trophy four more times, not to mention eight Scudetti.

Our President, who many times has made us angry with his choices and distant periods, but in the end has always shown that his heart is made up of these two colours [red and black].

Our President, at the worst moment of his stewardship, now has to make another decision of love, in the face of this current situation, and the mismanagement of those at the top which is demonstrated by the disastrous team which reached its nadir yesterday.

Now you face a turning point, and you must to decide whether to give up Milan, which has been yours for 29 years, and for which you wrote indelible pages of history.

Unfortunately, all stories have a beginning and an end.

Revolution must be just that - to start over again, while never forgetting our history and tradition.

Now is the time for you to make a choice, one which will surely be the best for Milan and all that the club represents.

If you decide to remain, we ask you to make a change at the corporate level, in order to return to being great.

If you decide to sell, you will always be the most successful President in the history of football, and no-one can ever erase that.

We are here awaiting the future, and always will be.”

As a fan of Serie A, I sincerely hope that the situation is resolved, because the league needs a good AC Milan (along with Inter) to be competitive.

 

Written by Serie A Writer

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Also: Below are the answers to yesterday’s crossword puzzle.

Suso: Hapless Liverpool prodigy aims to prove he is not to be another disappointing buy for a new-look Milan

  By O-Posts Team | January 18, 2024 - 16:59 | , , , , ,
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Back in June 2013 when Riccardo Saponara was on his way from Empoli to AC Milan, the hype surrounding the midfielder was so much the then-21 year old was being referred to as the “new Kaka”. Milan had signed him for €4 million that January but allowed him to remain with Empoli until the end of the season, where he finished with 13 goals and 15 assists in Serie B.

The excitement that shadowed Saponara to the San Siro was perhaps unfair, he only had previous experience of playing in the league below and with comparisons to Milan’s last truly-elite player, the 2007 Ballon D’Or winner Kaka, came a foreboding weight. He has failed emphatically to live up to the billing; in the following 18 months he has mustered just 8 appearances for Milan, not scoring or assisting once, and having made only a single appearance in this campaign he finds himself returning to Empoli on loan for the rest of the season.

The Rossoneri he leaves behind is a troubled club languishing eighth in Serie A, 17 points behind leaders Juventus, with manager Filippo Inzaghi appearing to consent with Silvio Berlusconi that a targeted-third place finish is now out of reach. With desperation creeping in, a £15 million move for Alessio Cerci, the striker who had failed to settle in Spain with Atletico Madrid, has been completed but met with a degree of cynicism from fans with fond memories of recent success.

Cerci will take the number 22 shirt, which supporters were quick to point out was once previously worn by Kaka. That name again, still lingering over Milanello despite the Brazilian having departed to see out the final rungs of his career in the sunny climbs of Florida and Orlando City. Ricardo Montolivo has urged supporters to forget about the past, “It’s hard to draw comparisons, but we’re talking about two teams searching for an identity” said the midfielder, “it’s a different Milan team than it used to be, there’s no point denying that.”

League winners as recently as 2011, Milan have had to sit European football out this season for the first time since 1998 and given their current struggles- they have won just 2 of their last 11 games, it will be a tough task to return for next year. Expectations have been downgraded considerably and so has the wage bill, now €94 million from the €160 million it stood at just two years ago.

Financial Fair Play regulations means the neoteric days of shelling out £16 million for Robinho, £22 million for Zlatan Ibrahimovic and £17 million for Mario Balotelli have passed, with bargain-basement captures of Giacomo Bonaventura, Adil Rami and Fernando Torres, signed for a total of £12 million last summer, or even frees for those discarded by Europe’s top clubs, Alex, Diego Lopez, Michael Essien, Jeremy Menez, is now the order.

The policy of spending-restraint led to the capture of Saponara (who took Gennaro Gatusso’s number 8 shirt which became another thorny issue for the sentimental) and most latterly Suso, signed from Liverpool on a 4 and a half year deal as the January window reaches its mid-way point. Again it is underwhelming, a midfielder who had managed just 21 appearances for Liverpool since his debut in September 2012 and leaves Anfield under a cloud after attending his Milan medical without the permission of his former club, fitting a crescendo to a series of attitude problems that were rumoured to have hindered his progress on Merseyside.

There is unquestionable potential in the Spanish midfielder Rafael Benitez personally intervened to sign from Cadiz under the noses of Real Madrid and Barcelona in 2010, then honed with time in Liverpool’s reserves and the NextGen series in 2011. The following season impressive first-team appearances came against Manchester United, West Brom and Norwich City and he was rewarded with a long-term deal that October, with Brendan Rodgers praising his “outstanding technical qualities”.

A further 16 appearances followed that season before he was sent on loan to Almeria for first-team experience and his time in La Liga was, on the whole, successful, registering 7 assists (more than Arda Turan of Atletico Madrid and Iker Muniain of Athletic Bilbao) and scoring 3 goals to help Almeria avoid relegation by a single point. As a small, agile, nimble-footed playmaker, he was mostly used as a left-footed winger on the right-side, given license to move centrally to create with his incisive passes in support of Rodri, the lone striker favoured by manager Francisco Rodriguez, and that combination would link together for 4 goals.

His bad side would also be showcased in Spain, one that would often fall short with his end-product, translating into a pass completion percentage of just 72.2 and a poor return of 103 inaccurate crosses from a total of 129 attempted. He would be disposed often as he struggled with direction on the ball, usually committing an over-zealous tackle in order to compensate, resulting in the 9 bookings and 1 dismissal he picked up, a significant number for a creator who should be more concerned with the elegant and technical side of the game.

He would return to Merseyside with the void left behind by Luis Suarez’s departure harbouring promise of a first-team breakthrough, though his progress would be stymied by a talented list of midfielders in Adam Lallana, Phillipe Coutinho, Raheem Sterling, Steven Gerrard, Jordan Henderson and Lazar Markovic, and he found himself limited to just one appearance, as a substitute in the League Cup against Middlesbrough. His goal in extra-time became his last act in a Liverpool shirt as mentality issues would again come to the fore and Rodgers’s patience would ebb away.

The Spaniard will now compete with Bonaventura, Cerci, M’baye Niang, Keisuke Honda, Jeremy Menez and Stephen El-Shaarawy for the playmaking spots but Inzaghi’s welcome suggested he would be given added opportunities in a more central role. “We are very happy to have Suso here and the fact he arrived early means he’ll be given more of an opportunity to acclimatise”, said the manager, “Suso can give us an important hand this season. He has great quality”.

“Suso is here because Riccardo Saponara wanted more playing time and we could not guarantee him that” said Inzaghi, perhaps subscribing to the same hope that will be shared among most Milan fans that Suso will not become a similar disappointment.

It is still a shock to see Milan lumbering along in Serie A and the 21 year old will have to improve on his time at Liverpool and Almeria if he is to help avoid it becoming the normality.

 

Written by Adam Gray

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AC Milan: Inzaghi forging managerial career at the San Siro with help from a couple of rejuvenated forwards

  By O-Posts Team | October 9, 2024 - 23:24 | , , , ,
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“Segna per noi” shouted 2,000 AC Milan fans to Filippo Inzaghi as he was unveiled as the club’s new coach back in July. They were asking him to score a goal, a nostalgic request to the former striker who made a living off his predatory instinct. There would be no doubt that Inzaghi would have been tempted, but as a manager now rooted firmly in the dugout, he would no longer be scoring goals, though he did using a recent training session to show the deadly scoring touch has not yet left him.

Goals will now have to be delivered by others as Inzaghi embarks on his managerial adventure, coming from Milan’s under-19 side, with whom he spent two years, to the front-line of a Rossoneri that, under the controversial eye of Silvio Berlusconi, is desperate to enter modernism.

Inzaghi’s predecessor, former team-mate Clarence Seedorf, was dispensed with in the summer after just 5 months in charge with Berlusconi describing the Dutchman as part of the club’s “past”.

Ironically Inzaghi comes from the same Milan past as Seedorf, both members of the side that won two Serie A titles and two Champions League in the eleven years that “Pippo”, as Inzaghi is affectionately known, spent at the club.

The last Scudetto came as recently as 2011, though it seems like an age since that was delivered by Massimiliano Allegri. Since then a period of decline has set in, last season’s 8th place finish was their lowest for 15 years and it was unsurprising to see Allegri fall by the way-side half-way through the campaign.

So came a summer of sweeping change. Backroom staff and players disagreed with Seedorf’s methods so he was axed, while 11 players departed with 10 coming in. With Mario Balotelli sulking and Stephan El Shaarawy’s campaign blighted by injury, how those Milan fans congregated to welcome Inzaghi, scorer of 126 goals for the club, at Casa Milan in the summer wished they were witnessing his return as a player.

Not quite, but Inzaghi set about an attacking upheaval. Mario Balotelli was sold to Liverpool while Robinho and Kaka, with no room for sentiment in this new era, were both jettisoned to the other side of the Atlantic. In would come Giacomo Bonaventura, a left-winger signed for £6 million from Atalanta, Jeremy Menez on a free from PSG while a punt was taken in the form of a 2-year loan for the struggling Fernando Torres of Chelsea.

Inzaghi would also be encourage to focus on the attackers already at his disposal, the likes of the returning El Shaarawy and Keisuke Honda, the Japanese playmaker who disappointed in his first few months at Milan following his long-awaited move from CSKA Moscow in January. Honda himself slated his contribution after netting just once, saying “this is not me, I know that people expect a lot from me. I hope that Milan fans will wait for me next season”.

The wait has been worth it, Honda scored Milan’s first goal of the season in the 3-1 win over Lazio, while strikes against Parma, Empoli and Chievo followed. The 28 year old also assisted Bonaventura’s first goal for the club in the rollercoaster 4-5 win at Parma and has settled impressively into the right-wing slot of Inzaghi’s favoured 4-3-3 system, urged to cut inside onto his left-foot.

“Keisuke Honda arrives 2 hours before training and leaves 2 hours after. He has an incredible attitude and I am happy” said Inzaghi, reminiscent of the work-rate the Italian coach himself displayed during his playing career.

Menez has also been a resurgent success, the forgotten man in Paris as his disappointing 8 goals in 3 years saw him subjected to the periphery of a squad that contained the luxuries of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Edinson Cavani and Ezequiel Lavezzi; the 27 year old has already struck 3 times in 6 games under Inzaghi.

After a goal on his debut against Lazio, two followed in the win over Parma, including an outstanding back-heel finish. Misfortune has struck however, with the forward going into the international break facing tests on an abductor muscle that could see him ruled out of action for a significant period.

With Torres’s arrival giving Inzaghi enough tactical flexibility to switch between 4-3-3 and 4-2-3-1 which accommodates the Spaniard as the sole striker, Menez’s absence can be managed though undoubtedly greatly felt. Respite will come in the fact that Torres, so often fragile in terms of confidence, has already opened his Milan account while goals from Sulley Muntari are also in the offing, the Ghanaian having already managed 2.

It has all made for a modest start to the campaign for Milan, taking 11 points from 5 games in which they have lost just once, a narrow 0-1 reversal to league leaders Juventus. Dropped points away at Cesena and Empoli will make Inzaghi aware that there is a long journey ahead before they can genuinely rival the Old Lady at the top, but a return to the Champions League may not be beyond Milan’s reach.

With Menez and Honda both firing and Torres and El Shaarawy, plus Giampaolo Pazzini and M’Baye Niang, working under the striking wisdom of Inzaghi, then such a target is perfectly possible. If it is achieved and the European nights are restored to the San Siro, then Pippo may become idolised for something other than just scoring goals.

 

 

Written by Adam Gray

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Keisuke Honda: AC Milan’s gain, CSKA Moscow’s loss

  By O-Posts Team | January 25, 2024 - 01:10 | , ,
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It may have been on the cards for a long time, but finally Keisuke Honda has decided to make the step up from CSKA Moscow to one of the world’s biggest clubs, AC Milan. Honda for already around 4 years has been capturing the attention of many of a big club, but only now has he decided that the time was right to make that move.

And for Milan, the transfer has come at a perfect time. The Italians are currently having their worst Serie A campaign for a very long time and only just squeezed into the last 16 of Champions League, and even if Honda can’t compete in Europe for them yet having already played for CSKA, they will be hoping that he can help turn around their domestic fortunes.

If you think that Milan are having a bad enough season, Honda’s already former club CSKA are not faring much better. Despite being the present holders of all three Russian trophies, the Russian Premier League, the Russian Cup and Super Cup, they have seriously flattered to deceive this time around.

Although they have gained ground on current Russian league leaders Zenit Saint Petersburg recently, in the Champions League they had a group stage to forget. Being drawn in a group alongside Manchester City and Bayern Munich didn’t do them any favours, but losing out to Czech minnows Viktoria Plzen for the Europa League spot was rightly so deemed simply unacceptable. And they still had possession of Honda at that time.

Not that he had been looking himself in the last few months of his CSKA career. As soon as he returned to Moscow from the Confederations Cup in Brazil last year, rumours starting circling that his departure for AC Milan was imminent, even Honda himself came out to the media stating that he had already started learning Italian.

CSKA weren’t willing to let him go, even though they knew full well that they would not make any profit on him at all when his contract ended in the winter and the player would be free to go where he wanted. And when a player knows that whatever happens he’ll be moving on, it’s hard to give 100%.

That’s exactly what happened, with Honda giving pretty poor performances not only in the Russian league but in the Champions League too, where he missed some guilt edged opportunities against Manchester City and Bayern.

That didn’t put Milan off though and why should it, he’s already shown time and time again that he is a playmaker of the highest calibre. Honda can strike a dead ball well as he has shown plenty of times in a Japan shirt, and for Milan he’s a player that can help them a lot right now. Just the thought of Kaka running at them and Honda sitting just behind the forwards ready to make an incisive pass at any moment should start to make their opponents scared of them again.

If it’s going to solve all of Milan’s problems though, it’s a different question. In the last few years Italian football has been gradually slipping further and further behind the rest of Europe, and it doesn’t seem that a repeat of Milan’s Champions League triumph in 2007 is forthcoming any time soon. And with Honda being cup-tied for the Champions League this season, the move certainly doesn’t help them out in that respect.

But in Italy the move could help them out to get back to winning ways. With Stephan El Shaarawy still sitting on the sidelines the Milanese have lacked a bit of star quality in recent weeks and to rely on Mario Balotelli every game just isn’t good enough.

Honda will take up the mantle of being playmaker in chief along with Kaka, and the two should complement each other. While Kaka is at his best when moving at speed with the ball, Honda will get in the right positions either waiting for an opportunity to score himself, or to be in a great position to make a cutting pass.

How long it takes them to build up team chemistry is of course the big question, and also if new coach Clarence Seedorf will trust Honda enough to give him a lot of playing time. Things certainly haven’t started off to badly, with Honda having already bagged his first goal for the club in a 3-1 Italian Cup win against Spezia.

In the long run, despite Honda already being 27 years of age, it should turn out to be a very good bit of transfer market business. Maybe he should have already a long time ago made the move to a supposedly bigger club than CSKA, but his chance has arrived and he will now have more pressure on him to produce the goods than ever before.

Milan may not be the force they once were but it’s a club steeped in tradition, and with such a player on their books, they should look into the future with a bit more optimism.

 

Written by Shaun Nicolaides

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Clarence Seedorf: AC Milan bold enough to take a justified gamble on the Il Professore

  By O-Posts Team | January 14, 2024 - 22:59 | , , ,
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The greatest testament to Clarence Seedorf’s dedication to football was how he described his decision to call time on his 22 year career as a “difficult night”. Seedorf had 16 months previously left Europe, where he had spent two decades, to join Botafogo of Brazil in a hugely lucrative deal, though any amount of money could not douse his ever-burning ambition.

There was still a desire to achieve success and he led the club, suffering from crippling financial problems and declining attendances, to the 2013 Campeonato Carioca. “One of the most important objectives was to put them back on top and get them back in the Libertadores for the first time in 17 years” he said, “the clubs deserves it, the fans deserve it and the players deserve it.”

Seedorf was speaking after his decision to retire from playing and take up the vacant managerial position at AC Milan where he spent ten years as a player. It comes after Milan finally lost patience with Massimiliano Allegri, fired after Domenico Berardi hit all 4 goals as Sassuolo came back from 0-2 down to win 4-3 on Sunday, leaving Milan just 6 points clear of the Serie A relegation zone.

Allegri, who had won just 5 of his 19 games in charge of Milan this season to leave them 30 points adrift of leaders Juventus, had gathered dark clouds overhead for a large portion of the campaign and the only surprise is that the Berlusconis waited as long as January to remove the 46 year old.

Another surprise comes in the form of Seedorf’s appointment, made on the back of no previous formal coaching experience but to no hesitation from the Milan hierarchy. “The decision [to sack Allegri] was decisive,” Seedorf said. “The call came in the middle of a training session. Obviously, it’s a place where I spent 10 years of my life so when the president asked me I couldn’t say no”.

It is a gamble perhaps made with the view that any chance of a top 4 place has already evaporated, presenting a chance for the Dutchman to learn the job and to be eased into the position in a window where the expectation levels are exceptionally low. There my even be hope that the managerial change to a club legend could galvanise the squad enough to close the ten point gap on Europa League qualification in order to rescue something from a bitterly disappointing campaign so far.

However the two and a half year deal according to his agent suggests the Rossoneri have something more long-term in mind. He comes in with the unanimous backing of president Silvio Berlusconi, with whom he describes his relationship as “very close”, and vice-president Adriano Galliani.

It will be his devout professionalism and enlightened understanding of the game, traits that contributed to his remarkable longevity, that appealed to them, as well as the unyielding dedication and versatility that sees Seedorf write a column for the New York Times as well as running a restaurant in Milan alongside his long-reaching charity work.

His humility and human touch make Seedorf a natural leader and in no uncertainty that he will be a success upon his return to the San Siro is his former coach Carlo Ancelotti, now in charge at Real Madrid. “Seedorf was my player, he has a very big personality,” said the Italian, “he has the capacity and knowledge to do everything in the world of football. He is going to get experience in an atmosphere he knows very well.”

The previous lack of managerial experience has not deterred Milan before of course, employers of Fabio Capello and Arrigo Sacchi and Ancelotti himself, though a career that garnered 21 trophies including four Champions Leagues and five league titles spread across three different clubs in three different countries suggests he is better placed than many to make the transition from player to head coach.

The sheer amount of silverware Seedorf, who has 87 caps for Holland, won will definitely arise hope that he can restore a winning mentality to a Rossoneri that has undergone dramatic decline since winning the Scudetto in 2011, as well as a dogged tenacity and work-ethic he embodied as a steely midfield force during his playing career.

It is significant that Galliani expressed a degree of sympathy for Allegri who had to endure the outgoings of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Andrea Pirlo, Thiago Silva, Gennaro Gattuso and Alessandro Nesta across the past two years of a tough transitional period for Milan.

Injuries to Stephan El Shaarawy and Giampaolo Pazzini have curtailed Allegri’s plans though a first XI including the likes of Mario Balotelli, Ricardo Montolivo, Nigel De Jong and Ignazio Abate have been complimented by a squad of average depth.

Adil Rami and Keisuke Honda have arrived this month and the summer capture of Kaka was a hugely promising signing, though Allegri failed to coax anything that resembled the potential best out of this group of players.

The massively respected Seedorf will be the next to attempt such a task, and given the resolute energy he puts into everything he does, few can bet against him failing.

 

Written by Adam Gray

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Kaka: The Brazilian Prince returns to AC Milan to launch another shot at the top

  By O-Posts Team | September 2, 2024 - 19:32 | , , , , ,
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What a difference four years make. In the summer of 2009, Kaka was moving from AC Milan to Real Madrid for €68.5 million with his reputation as one of the world’s best affirmed after being recognised by FIFA just two years earlier.

Now, in 2013, the football world has seemingly moved on from the Brazilian playmaker with his return to Milan a mere afterthought as Madrid break the bank for the latest wave of Galacticos.

Quite a significant way below all the furore created by the €100 million Madrid have lavished on Gareth Bale is the exit of Kaka on a free transfer. The clearest indication of how far Kaka’s stock has fallen in the four years since Milan’s chief executive Adriano Galliani refused to allow the £70 million pass the Rossoneri and duly cashed in on his talents.

2009 was in the same summer that Carlo Ancelotti, the manager who produced imperious form from Kaka in the mid-00s, also departed Milan and now he has turned up in Madrid and ruthlessly disposed of his former star is further indication of how far his genius has declined.

The midfielder will cut his wages in more than half to rejoin Milan on a two year deal that will see him earn €4 million per season, a huge drop from the €10 million he earned in the Spanish capital. Though it appears likely that finances will be secondary to Kaka’s burning desire to play after being marginalised in Madrid to the extent he started just 40 times since Jose Mourinho succeeded Manuel Pellegrini in 2010.

He has not played a minute under Ancelotti in Madrid’s opening three games and he has become a willing sacrifice as Florentino Perez aims to balance a wage bill swelled by the summer arrivals of Bale, Isco, Asier Illarramendi and Daniel Carvajal.

Kaka played just 964 minutes of football under Mourinho last season and remained on the pitch for the full 90 minutes on just one occasion as opportunities dried up for both club and country, Luiz Felipe Scolari omitting him from Brazil’s squad for the Confederations Cup over the summer. With the World Cup in his native country looming, Kaka has desperately jumped back to Italy in a bid to play his way back into the Selecao squad.

It is a new look Milan he will return to. Gone is the old guard of Gennaro Gattuso, Clarence Seedorf and Massimo Ambrosini whom he spearheaded alongside Filippo Inzaghi and instead he will link-up with the new generation of Mario Balotelli, Stephan El Shaarawry and Ricardo Montolivo.

Kaka will inherit the attacking midfield slot vacated by Kevin Prince-Boateng’s surprise departure to Schalke and is likely to share playmaking duties with Montolivo as Milan, who have undergone an elongated transition under Massimiliano Allegri, aim to return to the top of Serie A.

The Brazilian midfielder scored 9 goals and assisted 8 more in a decent first year in Spain but injuries curtailed his progress and forced him to be increasingly isolated under the eye of Mourinho.

It is likely that a troublesome left-knee would have curtailed some of the dynamic pace that was so effective in Ancelotti’s Milan but he will surely still possess the wonderful technique, divine balance, vision and guile that devastated most of Europe as he drove the Rossoneri to the Champions League finals of 2005 and 2007.

Despite the 31 year old’s struggles for form, those at Milan will need little convincing about the quality of deal that Galliani has pulled off and few will need reminding of the worth he is to the club after scoring 95 times and registering 46 assists in five years at the San Sio. In his first year at Milan, after arriving for €8.5 million from Gremio, a fee which Silvio Berlusconi compared to “peanuts”, Kaka hit 14 goals on the way to winning the Serie A title.

Allegri, Galliani and Berlusconi will be hoping for a similar impact this time around and with Nigel De Jong and Antonio Nocerino forming a solid midfield base for Kaka to freely support the potent forward line of Balotelli and El Shaarawry, it could turn out to be one of the most inspired dealings of the summer.

While Boateng couldn’t quite adapt to Allegri’s system despite a largely successful three years in Milan, Galliani has pulled off a major coup in bringing back, for free, the poster boy of their brilliant side of 6 years ago, whom they sold for €68 million. Should he rediscover a fraction of the form that saw him named Balon D’Or winner just 6 years ago, the Rossoneri will reap a superb piece of business.

The Brazil international told reporters after he completed his deal that “I’m happy and we have a great team. Last night I watched my team again. The San Siro? I just can’t wait”. Neither can the eyes of European football as they wait to see if Kaka can return to something near his terrific best.

“I’m going home” Kaka said, referring to Milan and possibly, back to Brazil.

 

Written by Adam Gray

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