Category: AC Milan

ALLEGRI STAYS ON

The Italian club AC Milan have confirmed that the current manager Massimiliano Allegri will be retained as the manager next season as well. The future of the 45-year-old has been subjected to a lot of speculation over the last few months, with many expecting his impending departure. However, the form of the club has shown an incredible rise over the past few months. Milan, who were struggling with the prospect of relegation earlier in the season, are now closer to the top three positions than their arch rivals Inter Milan. This coupled with the arrival of a few quality signings during January has improved the mood at the club.

The vice president Adriano Galliani has taken time to confirm that Allegri will remain as the manager of Milan. He also compared Allegri to the former manager of Milan – Carlo Ancelotti. Ancelotti had a lot of success with Milan and he was especially famous for a stable time at the club. Milan are just a few points below the top three positions, which will guarantee them Champions League football next season. Due to the financial situation of the club, Milan certainly need to play in the group stages of this competition. The club recently signed Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli, who scored two goals on his debut.

“Allegri will still be Milan’s coach next season. He is a good tactician and we have always known that. He reminds me of Carlo Ancelotti because he is so balanced,” said the Milan vice president Adriano Gallaini. Milan have been on an incredible run of form in the last few weeks, which has seen them drop just two points out of a possible 15 points. As a result, they are only three points below the third placed Lazio. They are ahead of their arch rivals Inter Milan on goal difference.

NEW YEAR HOPES

After suffering one of the worst years in the history, the AC Milan manager Massimiliano Allegri has said that he is extremely confident that the New Year will prove to be significantly positive for the club in every aspect. After suffering a number of financial problems, Milan had to sell a number of high profile players like Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic summer. The loss of such magnitude has been simply too much to take for the team, which has suffered with inconsistencies and poor form since the start of the season. As a result, they are currently seventh in the Italian Serie A table.

Milan recently lost 4-2 to one of the top teams in Italy – Roma. Despite this defeat, Allegri has said that he remains upbeat about the chances of Milan finishing the season positively. It looks highly unlikely that Milan will be able to qualify for the Champions league next season. They are currently at the last 16 stage of this European competition with the Spanish club Barcelona. Hence, they will find it hard to even progress to the quarter-final stage. In addition to this, they have also lost the services of the star Brazilian striker Alexandre Pato, while the departure of Robinho is also expected shortly.

“After the defeat to Roma, we need to bounce back. Hopefully in 2013 we will solve our problems at conceding goals from set-pieces. The important thing is to improve our mental approach. Our objective is to qualify for the Champions League and we need to start picking up points,” said the Milan manager. The future of Allegri has been in a cloud of doubt over the last few months, but he now looks set to complete at least the season with Milan before possibly leaving the club in the summer.

CATANIA MATCH CRUCIAL

The AC Milan manager Massimiliano Allegri has suggested that the match against Catania will be extremely important for the team. He has said that this match is even more important than the last weekend’s encounter with Juventus. The 1-0 win over Juventus has given AC Milan a lot of confidence ahead of this match. A lot of the AC Milan players have been speaking about the confidence of being able to qualify for the Champions League next season. The team is currently in the 10th position, with Catania one point ahead of them in the table.

The AC Milan vice president Adriano Galliani recently said that the manager Massimiliano Allegri will remain at the club at least in the end of the season. He was speaking after the 1-0 win over Juventus that helped the club get into the top half of the table for the first time this season. However, the hard work done against Juventus will not matter if the club did not get a victory against Catania according to the manager. The AC Milan goalkeeper recently Amelia said that Allegri was the best man for the job because he has finally found a formation that has suited players, as they dominated against the champions Juventus during the weekend.

“I think it will be a very tough match tomorrow (Friday), because we will be facing Catania and they are very strong at home, almost all the points they have taken have come from their home games. On the top of that, they’ve just been defeated in their derby match against Palermo, so they will be determined to win again and there will be a difficult atmosphere for us. Tomorrow’s (Friday’s) match is much more important than the one against Juventus last Sunday,” said Allegri ahead of the match with Catania.

ALLEGRI BLAMES RESULTS

The AC Milan manager Massimiliano Allegri has said that the performance of the team has not been the issue this season, but the results have been the main problem. AC Milan have endured a terrible start to the new season and are currently closer to the relegation zone rather than the top of the table. AC Milan finally managed to put behind their problems and get a 1-0 win over Genoa during the weekend. This victory helped them to get clear of the relegation zone. AC Milan might have sold a number of crucial players over the summer, but their results have so far been extremely poor.

As a result, it is widely expected that the manager Massimiliano Allegri will be sacked from his position in the next few days. However, he has given him some breathing space with the 1-0 win. Stephan El Shaarawy scored in the final few minutes of the match to give AC Milan the first victory in the last three matches. They were coming into the match on the back of three consecutive defeats, which have intensified the pressure on Massimiliano Allegri. However, Stephan El Shaarawy proved once again that he is a shining star in an otherwise poor Milan team by scoring the goal.

“I have always been relaxed as the team have put in strong performances. Criticism has been too harsh, considering what we have seen on the field. The situation at Milan is simply an issue of results, not performances. We could have scored in the first half, while there were a number of controversial penalty decisions. Overall, I am happy with the win. We secured this result in the difficult atmosphere surrounding us at the moment, and I am happy with the way the team has reacted,” said Allegri after the match.

ALLEGRI WILL REJUVENATE AC

The AC Milan manager Massimiliano Allegri has said that he is extremely confident that the club can be rejuvenated following the departure of many older players in the summer. AC Milan have always been criticised for having a number of players over the age of 30, who were still playing an important role in the team. However, this summer has seen a lot of changes at the San Siro with a number of key players like Gattuso and Filippo Inzaghi leaving the club. Coupled with these players, the club has also lost the influential players like Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

There has been a lot of criticism from the AC Milan fans over the lack of responsibility by the club to replace the players who have eventually been sold or released from their contracts. As a result, there has been a significant drop in the season ticket sales. However, the manager Massimiliano Allegri expects the fans to understand the reasons behind the changes at the club. AC Milan have been suffering a lot of problems financially and they needed to sell some of their best players in order to balance the books. The UEFA financial fair play regulations has come into effect recently.

“We needed a generational change. It might not be nice, but that is how life goes. Carlo Ancelotti [Milan’s former manager] was fortunate to boss people like Gennaro Gattuso, Pippo Inzaghi, Alessandro Nesta and Clarence Seedorf at the peak of their careers. I too would have liked them in my squad when they were seven years younger. It takes courage to make the painful decisions that Milan made,” said Massimiliano Allegri. Milan were defeated in the opening match of the season against Sampdoria, but they recovered sufficiently to beat Bologna 3-1 in the second match of the season.

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REAL SMASH AC

Real Madrid has defeated AC Milan by 5-0 in a pre season friendly match at Yankee Stadium. The Portuguese superstar, Cristiano Ronaldo, scored two goals for Real Madrid in the match. The Brazilian midfielder, Kaka, also played brilliantly in the match and he assisted in three goals. This match has exposed the weaknesses in the defense of AC Milan. The defenders of Milan struggled throughout the match and the Real Madrid players kept taking advantage of the weak Milan defense.

Angel De Maria scored the first goal for Madrid in the 24th minute of the match. He put the ball in the goal post with a fantastic volley from the distance of 25 yards. That was a wonderful goal. But, Robinho scored the leveler for Milan in the 33rd minute. At the end of the first half, both the teams were leveled at 1-1. But, in the second half, the Madrid players were on fire. Ronaldo took Madrid ahead by scoring his first goal of the match in the 49th minute. He made the score 3-1 by capitalizing on a brilliant pass from Kaka in the 66th minute. The Madrid players kept on attacking and Sergio Ramos scored the fourth goal for the team in the 81st minute by a fantastic header. The Milan players almost gave up after that. Right before the end of the match, Jose Callejon scored another goal for Madrid to make the score 5-1.

Kaka came to play as a substitute in the 62nd minute of the match, but, he showed brilliant form. The manager of Real Madrid, Jose Mourinho, looked delighted with the performance of his team in the match. After the match, he said that it was wonderful to see Ronaldo and Kaka playing in such fine form right before the start of the season. Both of them are very important for the team and hopefully, they would continue their good form throughout the season.

MEXES WANTS TROPHIES

AC Milan defender Philippe Mexes has said that he is hopeful that the club will be able to challenge for the top honours, despite the departure of players like Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva in the transfer window. AC Milan decided to sell the duo after they received a mind-boggling offer of £ 55 million from the French club PSG. This substantial offer coupled with the huge financial difficulties experienced by the Italian club led to the sale of the two players. Now, they are in the state of the building with the transfer fee received from the sale.

The AC Milan defender Philippe Mexes, who joined the club a few seasons ago from Roma, has said that he is hopeful that the club can challenge for top honours despite the departure of these players. There has been a lot of pessimism surrounding the San Siro in recent weeks after the departure of these two players, with many fans staging a protest about the decline of the team. It was only a season ago that AC Milan were extremely high after having lifted the Italian Serie A title after a gap of many seasons. Philippe Mexes believes that AC Milan will be able to replace these players due to their expertise in the transfer window.

“We have lost two great players, but the important thing now is to think of all the games awaiting us. We must again prove that we are Milan, a competitive Milan. In pre-season, you need to work so much; we must put ourselves in a position to be ready for the new season. I had a month off after the Euros and I have to be at my best before the start of the championship. I have to give my all, like all my team-mates,” said the defender.

AC REJECT SILVA OFFER

Italian club AC Milan have rejected a world-record offer for a defender. The club’s owner Silvio Berlusconi has revealed that he has rejected a € 46 million offer for defender Thiago Silva from French club PSG. The French club Paris St Germain have made it no secret that they have vast resources available to the manager Carlo Ancelotti in the summer transfer window. They have been pursuing a number of high-profile targets including Real Madrid midfielder Kaka. Thiago Silva has been a long-standing target for Carlo Ancelotti even when he was the Chelsea manager.

Silvio Berlusconi now has revealed that the club has turned down the opportunity to sell the 27-year-old defender for a world record fee of € 46 million. The current world record fee for a defender stands at € 33 million that Manchester United paid more than 10 years ago for Rio Ferdinand. Thiago Silva is currently on a contract that runs until 2016, while he is one of the relatively low paid players at the club. His contract pays him around only € 3.5 million. He can surely expect the figure to double if he joins Paris St Germain, but Silvio Berlusconi has also revealed that the club will offer a new contract for the defender.

“We had no intention of selling Silva. Thiago Silva is a great man and we can find an easy solution. We hope to have the best defence next season. They made us a very interesting offer, close to €46m. We considered the possibility (to sell) and we looked at the central defenders that could replace Thiago Silva but we haven’t found an adequate player. The old heart of Silvio Berlusconi has allowed us to reject this offer,” said Berlusconi. Paris St Germain sporting director Leonardo has said that he is extremely disappointed with the outcome.

WE NEED A MIRACLE

AC Milan manager Massimiliano Allegri has said that his team will have to perform extra special in order to retain the title. AC Milan are looking to win back-to-back Italian Serie A titles after a long time. However, Juventus are currently leading the table by three points with only four matches remaining in the season. Further, AC Milan have tough match against Inter Milan in the remaining four matches. Due to this situation, it now looks possible that AC Milan will miss out on the title that they won after a long time, while Juventus will be able to claim the title for the first time since 2006.

Juventus are currently unbeaten in the league – a record that is shared by the AC Milan side of many years ago. The 44-year-old Massimiliano Allegri has been able to lead AC Milan to the quarter-finals of the Champions League and has also brought them extremely close to winning the title. However, in order to realise the dream of actually winning the title, they need to perform extraordinarily well in the remaining few matches of the season according to the manager. Juventus have been able to win seven straight matches, while AC Milan have just three victories in their last nine matches.

“Looking at how Juve are playing it’s hard to see them losing points. However, in football the psychological situation can change at any moment and so we have to win at Siena. They are a team that have played some good football and have played intensely with their best characteristics. We have to play with the utmost concentration and sacrifice and we mustn’t allow them too much space. We can only hope that they’ll slow down,” Allegri said after the 1-0 win over Genoa. Kevin Prince Boetang scored late in the match to give AC Milan all three points.

JUVE WILL PUSH TO THE END

Juventus defender Leonardo Bonucci has said that his club will be right behind AC Milan in the race for the Italian Serie A title. Leonardo Bonucci has also said that Juventus will be able to take advantage of any slipup from AC Milan in the title race. The business end of the season has been approaching in Italy for quite some time now. Juventus have managed to stay in touch with AC Milan at the top of the table, although they have lost a few points recently.

AC Milan have been quite spectacular this season and have been the strongest team in the division. However, Leonardo Bonucci reckons that Juventus will be able to take advantage of any slipups that AC Milan might have over the next few matches due to the intense pressure.

Juventus and AC Milan recently played out a 2-2 draw at Turin. It was a draw that helped Juventus see off the threat from AC Milan for the Coppa Italia final. After the draw, Bonucci said that Juventus are more than a match for AC Milan in the league. Further, given that AC Milan have commitments in the Champions League – where they will be facing Barcelona in the quarter-finals – Juventus are the best placed team for winning the league title this season, ahead of Simon Kjaer‘s Roma.

“I am very happy to qualify for the [cup] final. In the four games that we have played against Milan, we have shown that we can keep up with them head-to-head. After all, we beat them twice and drew twice. This must give us strength and belief in our abilities. If Milan make a mistake, we are right there,” the 24-year-old defender wrote on his blog on the official website of Juventus. The club are currently four points behind AC Milan in the table.