Serie A Preview: Milan

In terms of Champions League titles only Real Madrid can better AC Milans record of seven. The Milanese giants were a European powerhouse in the 90s and 00s but have since regressed dramatically. Last summer was met with lots of optimism as Milan signed some very good players and a new owner was in place. The season that followed was a disaster until Gennaro Gattuso stepped in and steadied the ship. Gattuso even secured European football. Now another summer is almost over and excitement is once again building at Casa Milan. Theres been some exciting signings and theres a new owner in charge.

In this preview we look at Milans summer dealings, how they might set up in Serie A and our tactical analysis looks at Gattusos style of play.

Coach

Gennaro Gattuso took charge when Vincenzo Montella was sacked after a disastrous start to the season. The former midfielder made some tactical changes and led the club through a very good spell in the winter. In the end he led Milan to sixth and a place in the Europa League and to the Coppa Italia final. Theres been rumours that Antonio Conte is lined up to replace him in the future but as of now Gattuso is the man in charge and hes deserved the chance to get a full season in the San Siro hotseat.

Transfers

Milans summer has been dominated by the ownership issue which was finally resolved when the American hedge fund Elliott Management took control of the club instead of Yonghong Li. The new owners ensued UEFA about Milans finances which allowed them to compete in the Europa League. They then installed Leonardo as sporting director and brought back Paulo Maldini as Strategic Development Director. Both appointments appease the fans.

Milan had made three free transfers prior to Leonardos arrival. The new signings were Pepe Reina from Napoli who joins as Gianluigi Donnarummas back-up, Croatian attacker Alen Halilovic and his countryman Ivan Strinic who will provide cover at left-back. Leonardo then oversaw the remarkable triple deal which saw Leonardo Bonucci return to Juventus in exchange for highly-rated Mattia Caldara. The third part of the deal was Gonzalo Higuains arrival at Milanello. What a signing that is for the Rossoneri. Bonucci is also the only notable departure from the squad.

Tactical analysis: How does Milan play?

Gattuso had almost exclusively used a 4-3-3 in his time in charge at San Siro. Defensively, Gattuso wants his side to be compact and to press the ball intensively when it reaches the middle third. One common pressing scheme is the one Ive highlighted below. One of the central midfielders, in this case the left-sided Bonaventura, steps up to join the striker in the first line of pressing. The wingers join the defensive midfielder and the ball-far central midfielder in establishing a new four-man midfield behind the press.

Ive highlighted space in the right-sided half-space where the Inter winger Candreva has moved inside on this occasion. This has often been a problem area for Milan under Gattuso. Especially in the game against Inter did Milan struggle to close this space behind the pressing central midfielder. The press was therefore in vain and the press was repeatedly broken. Another issue theyve had at times has been poor back-up to the first line of pressing as the second line (the midfield) has been too deep and the press has therefore easily been broken by the opponent. These are issues Gattuso must look to solve. When they manage to close the half-space though, theyve been tough to play against since they press with the urgency typical of their coach.

Its a very narrow 4-3-3 in attack as both wingers repeatedly make inverted movements in possession and leaves the flanks to the full-backs who sometimes take up the option of bombing on. In the image below Ive highlighted Suso in the right-sided half-space while also showing Calhanoglus movement inside from the left wing. The right-back Calabria (white) is attacking the wing to give Suso more room centrally.