On January 6, less than one month ago, AC Milan won the Supercoppa Italiana after an incredible 3-2 comeback against Inter, marking the second win in a row of new manager Sergio Conceicao, who replaced Paulo Fonseca one week before. It finally seemed like the beginning of a new era for the Rossoneri, but things haven’t really changed as just a few weeks later the two sides will meet again for the third Derby della Madonnina of the season.
AC Milan, after losing six times in a row against the city rivals, managed to win twice under the two Portuguese coaches, but it wasn’t enough. The issues of the Italian giants are still there, issues that don’t exist just due to the choices of their manager. This is why the club owned by the RedBird group led by American businessman Gerry Cardinale should really learn from the same Inter, that had similar issues before making a key decision.
Inter and AC Milan had a similar history over the past years. They were owned by Chinese owners but then two different American funds took over both clubs, in different moments, after the former owners were not able to repay their debts. While Inter are still owned by Oaktree Fund, AC Milan were acquired by Cardinale in 2022 from the Elliott fund, a few days after winning their last Serie A title.
How to watch the Milan derby
- Date: Sunday, Feb. 2 | Time: 12 p.m. ET
- Location: San Siro– Milan, Italy
- Live stream: Paramount+
- Odds: AC Milan +320; Draw +250; Inter -115
Soccer is not a simple sport, and owning a club is no different. However, the issues concerning AC Milan seem quite clear. It’s not about the value of their players as over the years they signed some important ones like USMNT star Christian Pulisic, who already has 12 goals and provided seven assists this season. The three managerial changes that happened over the past five years had an impact for sure, but the real issue is about the club’s hierarchy.
It’s not a coincidence that a few hours before the most important game of the season, AC Milan are on the verge of replacing their main striker, with Alvaro Morata set to leave the club to join Galatasaray, as the Rossoneri are looking to sign Feyenoord striker Santiago Gimenez to replace the Spanish striker.
The Nerazzurri had similar issues under the management of former owners, the Suning Group as they were struggling to qualify for a spot in the Champions League. In December 2018, the former club president made a very specific choice and hired former Juventus man Giuseppe Marotta as the new CEO of the club. Marotta, who previously worked at Sampdoria, Venezia and Juventus, is a historical figure of the Italian soccer environment. Since he arrived, many things changed.
Inter decided to part ways with former manager Luciano Spalletti despite a good record and appointed Antonio Conte, who brought his ideas on and off the pitch. Players like Mauro Icardi and Radja Nainggolan were left out of the project even before the start of the new season, creating a new atmosphere inside the dressing room despite the technical abilities of the players in the team, as the club indicated under Marotta.
Things worked, and despite some rollercoasters that had an impact on the club, such as the economic crisis after the COVID-19 pandemic as some players needed to be sold, that mentality didn’t change. Conte left and Simone Inzaghi was appointed, and despite some big outgoings thanks to the work of the whole club structure, Inter were able to replace the players sold and won another Serie A title, reached a Champions League final in 2023, won two Coppa Italia and three Supercoppa Italianas.
AC Milan, on the other hand, had two different managerial changes in the last six months. After Stefano Pioli’s departure, the Rossoneri decided to hire an international manager, avoiding some easier options like the same Conte, who then joined Napoli, or Maurizio Sarri. Fonseca’s stint at the club wasn’t a success, and at the end of December, the Rossoneri replaced him with former FC Porto boss Sergio Conceicao.
The Portuguese immediately brought a different mentality, but as things stand, it is not paying off as it seemed at the beginning. Conceicao immediately said he was not there to be friends with the players, and as a consequence had a verbal fight on the pitch last weekend at the end of the 3-2 win against Parma at San Siro, after replacing both Theo Hernandez and Rafael Leao at halftime. All the players also had an argument before the game as they attended a concert by Italian rapper Lazza only two days before, per reports. These kinds of behaviors are not tolerated by the manager, who already had some conflicts with some players in his first month in charge at the club, as Morata’s situation has underlined, moving on from the forward quickly.
AC Milan don’t need to change managers every six months, but they need to investigate more what changes should be made in the club’s structure. Over the past few years, they changed multiple club directors including club legend Paolo Maldini, who parted ways with the Italian side in the summer of 2023. The figure of Maldini, one of the most iconic defenders in the history of the game, was not easy to replace, but despite the arrival of former striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic as the advisor to the ownership, the club failed to move forward. Inter are working with the same sporting director for a decade, Piero Ausilio, who arrived at Inter in the late 1990s. This is what AC Milan should try to do, seek that stability. Otherwise, replacing managers and club directors will never be the real solution.
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