Everything is on the up for Milan, but it could all come crashing down. Vincenzo Montella knows the size of the task he undertook last summer, and the pressure will be higher than ever from now on. Milan are what cliché lovers call a sleeping giant, a club failing to live up to past successes; but now is the time for them to wake up.
It is hard to understand just why the Rossoneri have fallen from grace so quickly, having won their 18th and last Serie A title just six years ago, but it certainly had something to do with owner Silvio Berlusconi’s change in attitude towards them.
When he bought them in the 1980s, two decades prior to becoming Italian Prime Minister, it was his mission to turn Milan into a super club. He stayed true to his promise, building successful teams on the European stage alongside Arrigo Sacchi, Fabio Capello and Carlo Ancelotti.
But after the 2011 domestic success, Berlusconi and the board set about dismantling their ageing core. Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva, both in their prime, were sold to Paris Saint-Germain while Clarence Seedorf and Andrea Pirlo were among the legendary figures to be discarded.
Under Ancelotti, Milan dedicated themselves to maintaining these players and others until the very end of the careers, and after that team was broken up, they lost their identity. They weren’t significantly replaced, either, and as a result, Milan have been in the wilderness ever since.
A refreshing summer and the Donnarumma conundrum
Fan protests, both by aggressive demonstration and boycott of the San Siro, made their feelings clear. Berlusconi finally parted company with Milan when he sold his shares to a Chinese consortium this summer, and with the fresh influx of money came a fresh sense of hope.
Even though Montella failed to help the club return to the Champions League, a competition they have won seven times, for the first time since 2014 in his debut campaign, there is a sense of light at the end of their darkest tunnel.
Big name signings were synonymous with Milan years ago, and they are once again now. Wolfsburg defender Ricardo Rodriguez, Atalanta’s powerful and highly-rated midfielder Franck Kessie and FC Porto striker Andre Silva are already signed, while ambitious moves for Real Madrid’s Alvaro Morata and Andrea Belotti of Torino are also mooted.
Yet, all this positivity could be cut at source. Quite ironically, given their devotion to helping condition older players not a decade ago, there is an exciting, youthful look to the squad right now.
Gianluigi Donnarumma, their 18-year-old goalkeeper, is seen as the best young player in his position in the world. It was announced on Thursday evening that Donnarumma had rejected a contract offer from Milan, with his current deal expiring next summer.
Not only does that mean he will be able to leave for free in just one year, but the news opens them up to vulnerability. Real Madrid are just one of the clubs who could poach him now for as little as £20million, while Juventus will be encouraged as they look for a successor to Donnarumma’s namesake, Gianluigi Buffon.
There are obviously two parties involved here, and in reality, neither come out of the saga better off. Milan need to build a new team to emulate the likes of Paulo Maldini, Alessandro Costacurta and Andrea Pirlo, just to name a few, and losing Donnarumma will hardly achieve that dream. For the first time in years, because of him, Manuel Locatelli and Alessio Romagnoli, the Rossoneri have a new spine emerging.
It has to be noted that Donnarumma is a client of one of the two most powerful football agents in the game, Mino Raiola, who also looks after the interests of Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic among others. There can be no better man to help make his next move, which looks like being away from the San Siro, from the player’s point of view.
Would it be for the best? Any other year it may well have been, but now is the time for hope at Milan, a time to believe players like Donnarumma, Locatelli and Romagnoli can fulfil their potential exactly where they are.
Joining Juventus would make sense, but there are no promises Buffon will step away anytime soon. The 39-yearold is the perfect mentor for Donnarumma, but having previously said the 2018 World Cup was his final target, he alluded to the possibility of going on even further, well into his forties.
They say all goalkeepers can last that long, but that is a bit of a myth. Very few maintain the level Buffon has, right through from being younger than Donnarumma is now.
Real Madrid would be a dream move for anyone, and you could forgive Donnarumma for seeing the bright lights of the Santiago Bernabeu shining in front of his eyes. But it can also be a poisonous environment, especially if things don’t go to plan. His age wouldn’t matter with Los Blancos, he’d sink or swim straight away. At Milan, a work-in-progress, he could easily develop alongside the entire team.
Most curiously, Donnarumma said just this week that he wanted to stay at the club. What has changed, only he will know, but there is a definite element of risk in appearing to turn his back on what could be one of the most exciting eras in such a huge club’s history.
The long journey back to the top could well be underway at Milan, but by losing Gianluigi Donnarumma, either now or next summer, the Rossoneri are in danger of letting all their new-found positivity slip away.
