Marco Giampaolo: The man taking AC Milan back to the top

Marco Giampaolo: The man taking AC Milan back to the top

Five bright new signings and a new school of thought could see 'The Professor's' young stars pass every test.

IT has been eight years since AC Milan last won Serie A, five since they last took part in the Champions League and three since they last lifted a trophy of any kind. For supporters of the Rossoneri, that wait for success feels like an eternity, watching on helplessly as their beloved club was controlled by three different owners, cycled through countless players and were led by no fewer than eight head coaches.

In short, they have been an unmitigated disaster, those same fans believing in numerous false dawns and each new boss ultimately steering them to nothing but disappointment. Perhaps the biggest issue over this difficult spell has been the constant attempts to tap into their glorious past, former heroes like Clarence Seedorf, Pippo Inzaghi and Gennaro Gattuso among those to have failed to replicate the glory of their playing days.

Yet now, with the start of the 2019/20 campaign fast approaching, there is a growing feeling that this time it could be different, that finally, Milan might be back on the right track. Instead of hoping nostalgia can be a catalyst, the Rossoneri have looked to the future as new boss Marco Giampaolo represents a clear break from those previous erroneous appointments.

A very average player who played for a raft of teams in Italy’s second and third tiers, the 52-year-old has compiled a distinguished resume as a Serie A Coach, taking over at Empoli and improving upon the foundations laid by predecessor Maurizio Sarri.

From there he moved to Sampdoria, overseeing a complete rebuild by the Genoa-based outfit and helping to develop some talented young players. The Blucerchiati may have only finished 10th, 10th and ninth during his three years at the helm, but Giampaolo’s work rightly earned widespread admiration, his team playing excellent football and earning some hugely impressive results against Italy’s biggest clubs.

Finally appearing to have a coherent strategy, Milan have clearly been seeking to help replicate the same environment, their signings this summer ensuring the Coach has a squad that he can mould in a similar fashion. They have brought in five new faces, 25-year-old Rade Krunić the oldest of a group that also includes Léo Duarte (23), Theo Hernandez, Ismaël Bennacer (both 21) and Rafael Leão (20).

That is a clear shift towards players with untapped potential rather than the pursuit of proven veterans like Leonardo Bonucci, Lucas Biglia and Nikola Kalinic that were acquired by the previous regime. Indeed, as well as targeting an influx of youth, Milan have shipped out many of their ageing squad members, Riccardo Montolivo (34), Ignazio Abate (32), Andrea Bertolacci (28) and Cristián Zapata (32) all allowed to move on.

In training, the squad has focussed on the tenants that are vital to the approach they will use this term, working on retaining possession, up-tempo passing and a proactive approach to winning back the ball whenever it is lost.

“I know where we want to go to reach my vision, mentality and attitude, so I realise there’s a lot of work ahead of us,” Giampaolo said at a press conference earlier this month. “It’s a long construction process, but we have laid down the blueprint. We must all share an idea that can take us towards important results together.”

It seems he has quickly won over the players too, and few have been as vocal in supporting him as star striker Krzysztof Piatek. The Poland international has been handed the club’s no.9 shirt this summer and insists he will honour it by improving on the 11 goals he managed in just 19 games for Milan last season after joining from Genoa in January.

“All the best strikers wear it; [Robert] Lewandowski, [Luis] Suarez, [Karim] Benzema, [Harry] Kane,” Piatek told La Gazzetta dello Sport last month. “I’m happy because the club believed in my quality. They told me I’d conquer the shirt, while I said I would’ve fought with all my strength to get it and I did.

“When I arrived in Italy, who would’ve said that I’d score more than Cristiano Ronaldo?” he continued, before going on to heap praise on his new boss. “But I want to improve and become top scorer. I’ll do everything to succeed. Giampaolo is a maestro of football, I can confirm that. I like his 4-3-1-2 system because it gives you many attacking solutions. In Italy I’ve already had four Coaches. He’s my fifth, but tactically he’s the best!”

That certainly bodes well but, despite finishing fifth last term, the fact that Milan were a staggering 22 points behind champions Juventus shows just how far away from contention they actually were. There remains much work to be done, but they finally have a genuinely good Coach with a proven track who is instilling his upbeat, positive approach into a talented young squad.

A Champions League berth is certainly a realistic aim, and with Marco Giampaolo at the helm, it seems that AC Milan are finally on their way back to where they belong. The waiting is over.

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