AC Milan are ramping up the Italian league as they did in their glorious past. This has occurred due to a mixture of talent, exciting transfers, brilliant management and true leadership on the pitch. While Juventus has fallen off a little bit from their familiar dominance in the league and sides like Inter and Napoli proving inconsistent, Milan's meteoric rise this season has been a treat to watch.
It is not only the backdrop of other teams that helped the Rossoneri surge to the top of the chart. The Red and Black have achieved it with their strength. Here we look at five particular reasons that are causing Milan to have the best spell since their Scudetto win in 2011.
5. Stefano Pioli:
The obvious credit should be given to the manager, Stefano Pioli. The 55-year-old recruitment in October of last year didn't click amongst Milan fans as he carried not the best of CVs. However, he has proved all his doubters wrong. Initially, Pioli helped Milan gain a much needed European place after the club suffered the worst start to a season in their history. This season though, it was decided that Ralf Ragnick will take over the hot seat at San Siro but the plan was abandoned. Instead, Pioli was handed a two-year contract and he repaid the faith by converting Milan into title challengers. Mainly, this emphatic rise has come after the restart period from last season following the lockdown. Pioli's tactics of smooth attacking football coupled with dogged defending have switched with his players. The results are emphatic.
4. Excellent players:
Probably, Milan sustains a better round of players after over a decade. The team was doomed with the selling of star players and filling their vacancy with fragile signings. Not anymore. Since a new set of people entered the board, Milan are progressing with some excellent signings and building up a stupendous squad for the future. As a result, the Red and Black are shining with class names on the pitch. Be it be Zlatan Ibrahimovic at the front or experienced center half in the form of Simon Kjaer, Milan are basking in red hot form. Hakan Calhanoglu has been a transformed figure under Pioli with his dynamic role while Ante Rebic's excellency is no different story. Sensational Rafael Leao has aided the breathtaking attack even more.
3. Squad depth:
It is also to be noted that Milan now doesn't only have better players but also plenty of them. As a result, they can count on two or three players to fill in a certain position in terms of suspension, injuries. As a case, the team is still thriving without star absentees on the pitch. In each department, there are effective players poised to make a difference whenever chances arrive at them. This has helped the side keep on their unbeaten momentum till now. It has also given Pioli a lot of options to handle the pressure of the Europa League and Serie A commitments week in and week out in such a congested schedule. The availability of rich players in the squad also ensured no dip in quality on the pitch. Rightfully, they are being ambitious.
2. Franck Kessie:
Kessie's consistency and dedication to the club were always there. Since the time he has been with the club, his top drawing performances are a treat to watch. In this season, he has taken his game to a whole new level. As always, he's been a rock in the midfield. With the team improving, his responsibilities have shot up. Kessie has taken those on his shoulders in steaming his side forward. Pioli's switch to 4-2-3-1 from 4-3-3 has allowed the midfielder to focus more on defensive duties rather than being a usual box to box player. That load is taken of him because of the aforementioned names in the attack. As a case, Ismael Bennacer's absence is not felt. The Ivorian's overall contribution made Milan a far more balanced side than before.
1. Zlatan Ibrahimovic:
The most important factor of all has to be Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Without the great Swede, these feet would have been impossible to achieve. AC Milan made some star striker signing beforehand but neither Andre Silva nor Krzysztof Piatek made the decisive cut. Both were sold at a loss too. So when Ibrahimovic returned to Rossoneri colors from LA Galaxy in January, few expected staggering goal figures despite his status in world football. His age being the prime factor. But you can't doubt Zlatan, could you? At the age of 39, he has already matched the number of goals he scored last season (10) in just 6 games before he got injured. He added a few more in the Europa League too. This spring in step as if Zlatan is still playing in his prime is just staggering. Milan are hoping to get him back as soon as possible.
