The Impact of the Fans

Milan’s Curva Sud are legendary for their coreografia, the amazing banners and displays they present for Derby matches and other big games. All bias aside, they are the best I’ve seen, and other clubs have often copied them. Additionally, the fans sing chants, play drums (when allowed,) and cheer to create an atmosphere that is phenomenal. Even though flares have been outlawed for some time, there are many legendary pictures where the light of the flares and the smoke they create make for amazing photography and also make you wish you were there.

"When you are in hell, only the devil can save you"... brilliant Curva coreo

Mercato Calm

Even in the best of the past ten years, no one would realistically put the words “mercato” and “calm” together in the same sentence when referring to AC Milan. Most fans of most clubs need hypertension medication just to survive the transfer window, because there are so many crazy rumors. But this time, we really don’t need to worry. The team we had already was so competitive that it was still better than all of the teams we had in the past ten years. Any signings to reinforce are just icing on the cake. And that is why we can all stay mercato calm.

Yes, calm like that.

Milan Femminile: A League of Their Own

The disparity between male and female athletes and teams is not news. However, how different nations and clubs are attempting to narrow that gap differs tremendously. Creating equity is especially difficult in a country like Italy, where the oppressive levels of sexism and domestic violence require public service announcements like this one simply to try to keep women alive and well at the hands of men. Not a surprise, then, that when the world was racing to catch up in the disparity within women’s football, Italy would make so many glaring and egregious errors.

Still playing at the youth facility

Podcast: Evidence-based Optimism

At this time of the year, Milan fans are used to having mercato PTSD. But this year, we have evidence that we can be optimistic. To prove that, Nic from Milan Club Boston and I took a tour of some of the summer mercato signings of the past eight years. After remembering some of the “marquee” signings from those years, we realized that we have so much evidence to be optimistic about Milan this year.

Look how far we've come

The Return of Milan

Watching the finals of both the Europa League and the Champions League this weekend, one thing was clear: Europe is not the same with Milan. UEFA needs Milan in their competitions just as much as Milan need to return to European glory. Paolo Maldini won five Champions League trophies, and having him back at the club begs a return to European glory. So as the players return to Milanello today for tests, then back to training tomorrow, it’s a good time to look at what could lie ahead.

Time for a comeback

Podcast: Mercato Crazy

This is such a strange year, and such a strange time to be in between seasons. The mercato hasn’t even opened yet, but the players are returning to Milanello on Monday. However, there is some news and also mercato updates to talk about. That made it a perfect time to turn to the fans from Twitter, so Francesco and I answered their questions, as well.

Saying goodbyes, waiting for hellos

What it Really Means to Have Your Own Opinion

With the Rangnick circus finally over and nearly forgotten, I thought it might be a good time to address the concept of what it actually means to have your own opinion. Throughout this saga, as well as so many others, I have seen how the influence of ignorance and social media has propagated a sort of blind oblivion where so many Milan fans are content to dwell, without ever using their own minds at all. Or those fans with no convictions of their own, who change opinions with the social media trends like they change their socks. So for today, here is what it really means to have your own opinion.

He knows what it is to have his own opinion

The Right Choice

With some decisions, only time will tell. We must wait for the outcome to know whether or not we have made the right choice. With other decisions, we know right away. When Milan made the choice to stick with Pioli, Maldini, and Massara for our sporting sector instead of hiring Ralf Rangnick in any or all of his rumored positions, we knew right away that we had made the right choice.

The right choice

Reinforcing vs. Rebuilding

After a season-long battle with rumors that were ridiculous and unnecessary, Milan found their stride on the pitch after the break, the only team in Serie A that were undefeated. Between Pioli and the team proving that Maldini and Boban’s theory of a young team with some older players would bring us back to winning ways, and the prohibitive costs behind the ridiculous rumors plan, everyone finally got on the same page again. Now, it is just a matter of reinforcing this mercato, instead of completely rebuilding… again.

When extending a player is better than a new signing

The Price of Football

Yesterday saw Atalanta get knocked out of the Champions League quarterfinal in less than three minutes of stoppage time. Having led for most of the match, the expensive Paris Saint Germain players finally broke down the little team from Bergamo. Whether you root for the underdog, or just want to see beautiful football, I think most people aside from PSG fans were shocked by the last minute change of fortunes. But when your team costs an actual fortune, that is what sometimes happens. That is the price of football.

Courage, hard work, and heart are still no match for fortune

Living in the Past: Serie A’s Coaching Future

Milan fans who talk about having seven Champions League trophies are often told that they are living in the past. However, Milan’s past is now Serie A’s future: three, possibly four of the players who lifted Milan’s last two Champions League trophies will be coaching in Serie A next season. That doesn’t even count Maldini as Milan’s technical director, or Dida, reported to be Milan’s goalkeeping coach next season. It seems as though living in the past is actually not just Milan, but all of Serie A’s future.

Milan's past is living on

Podcast: 2020 Player Ratings

The season is over and contract extensions and transfer rumors are in full swing, which means that it is time to look back on this past season and give our player ratings. This season, I had Jesús and Miguel join me as we made the really hard calls about not just performances, but also about fashion sense, hairstyles, and facial hair. You have been warned.

Awesome is just a number

Ciao, Jack

When Milan fans think of Giacomo Bonaventura, the emotions run high. Maybe it is because he wept tears of joy when he signed the contract for Milan, and wept tears of sorrow as he said one last goodbye to the San Siro on Saturday. But for fans, it is so much more than that. He is a player who gave Milan everything, and was 100% a class act through everything the club went through this past six years. Rarely does a player come along that is so beloved by so many fans, and that is why it is so hard to say goodbye. Ciao, Jack.

Etched in our hearts

Milan 2020-21 New Kit Review

If 2020 has been a bad year for people breathing and catching a deadly virus, it has also apparently been an equally bad year for the people at Puma who design Milan’s kits. I recognize that this is an unpopular opinion, but just know that I see what you people wear 365 days a year, so I am not in the least impacted by your fashion sense. It’s a good thing our team have been playing well, because hopefully no one will pay attention to the fashion crimes that they are being forced to wear going forward.

If you make it, they will buy

Podcast: Bittersweet

A victory and a clean sheet was a dream ending to an intensely strange season, but, as with each season ending, there was some heartbreak as well. Adreano and I talked about a lot of the news surrounding Milan, the last two wins of the season, and also got emotional talking about Bonaventura and other players leaving. It was all a little bittersweet.

Bittersweet

Milan 3, Cagliari 0: Grand Finale

No one who watched the first few matches of this season could have ever guessed it would end like this. Certainly not ending on August 1st, interrupted by a global pandemic. Since the original kickoff, the coach changed, Ibrahimovic returned, and Milan are the absolute antithesis of what they started out as. Milan are also the only unbeaten team in Serie A since the return. So adding the three-nil win over Cagliari was not only the icing on the cake, it was a grand finale.

#AlwaysMilan