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So Far, No Coach In Europe's Big Leagues Has Had A Better 2019 Than AC Milan's Gennaro Gattuso

This article is more than 5 years old.

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As 2018 drew to a close, it seemed to be only a matter of time before AC Milan pulled the plug on Coach Gennaro Gattuso. Hired in November 2017 to replace Vincenzo Montella who had seven months left on a two-year contract, Gattuso’s record was not that much better than the man he had replaced.

Milan finished 6th in 2016/17 under Montella, 9 points out of 4th spot and a possible place in the Champions League. Last season, Gattuso’s Milan finished in the same position, 8 points short of a coveted Champions League spot.

In April of last year, Elliott Management, a US-based hedge fund, took ownership of the club and in October, Ivan Gazidis, formerly of Arsenal, was installed as chief executive. It would have been no surprise if the combination of new owners and new management led to a coaching change, particularly when you consider that Milan failed to qualify for the knock out rounds of the Europa League.

The names of possible replacements for Gattuso were bandied around but nothing came of it. Gattuso was still in charge when the New Year arrived and suddenly Milan hit stride and became one of the form teams in Serie A.

After round 18 on Boxing Day, Milan was 6th with 28 points, a point behind Sampdoria and 3 points behind Lazio in 4th. There was a gap of 8 points between Milan and city rivals, 3rd place Inter. Fast forward to today and going into Sunday’s Milan derby the league table looks very different.

Milan is up to 3rd with 51 points, a point better than Inter and 4 points ahead of Roma, now 5th.

In five of the nine games Milan has recorded a clean sheet and January signings, striker Krzysztof Piątek and midfielder Lucas Paquetá, have already proved to be quality additions to the Milan line up.

With 11 rounds of play remaining there is a sense of optimism around Milan that has been missing for many years. Seven wins and two draws in their last 9 Serie A games will do that.

What’s more, Gattuso will be on the Milan bench for the derby after avoiding a suspension after an incident during Milan’s win against Chievo last weekend. Instead, Gattuso was fined €15,000 ($17,000) for "directing an intimidating look at a player of the rival team." It’s just as well that “the look rule” wasn't applied when Gattuso was a player or he would have been extremely poor.

The tables have certainly been turned and it is Inter that go into Sunday’s game with trepidation. Inter's performances in Serie A over the last few months have been little more than average and being knocked out of the Europa League in the round of 16 to Eintracht Frankfurt will not have helped either.  Then there is the relationship between Inter and talisman Mauro Icardi. In February, Icardi was stripped of his role as club captain and things have only gone from bad to worse since. The chances of kissing and making up seem remote at best and a summer transfer seems inevitable.

What started as a run-of-mill contract dispute quickly turned into a full-scale battle royal with Icardi’s wife and manager, Wanda, taking on the role of a Lady Macbeth character.

AC Milan and Financial Fair Play

If Milan does finish in the top four of Serie A, at the end of the season, then they will return to the UEFA Champions League for the first time since the 2013/14 season.

But if it wasn’t for the decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) late last year, Milan would have been banned from all European tournaments for two years.

The decision by the UEFA panel to impose a 2-year ban was partly upheld on appeal to the CAS. The CAS punted the length of the suspension back to UEFA based on the original ban being disproportionate to the offense. The CAS also noted the improved financial position under new owners Elliott Management.

UEFA re-evaluated and withheld €12m ($13.6m) in prize money due to Milan from participation in the Europa League and imposed a one-year ban if Milan doesn’t break even by June 2021.

Qualifying for the 2019/20 Champions League would go a long way towards meeting the break-even requirement.