Why AC Milan could even fail to qualify for the Europa League

19 nov 2017

AC Milan's start to the 2017/2018 season has been anything but a dream especially when one takes into account the great expectations with which the club and their fans had going into this Serie A season. All the positive vibes from having qualified for the Europa League by finishing 6th the previous season, the club having finally changed owner to a Chinese businessman who in turn had given CEO Marco Fassone and Sporting Director Massimo Mirabelli around €200 million to spend on the transfer window to rebuild the team, have completely vanished. With every signing that Milan presented the expectations got higher and higher until the point where there were murmurs of maybe mounting a challenge for the Scudetto.

Those Scudetto murmurs have silenced long ago and the only sound being heard right now from Milanello is sighs of frustration as well as early signs of panic since after having lost their 6th match in their 13th first Serie A matches yesterday away against Napoli, AC Milan are now en route to not even qualifying for next season's Europa League. When Vincenzo Montella led the Rossoneri to that last European spot last season, Milan had lost 11 matches over the course of the entire season. Now, with only a little bit more than a third of the Serie A season having been played, Milan have managed to lose 6 times already.

Sure, there is plenty left to play for and Milan can still turn things around and go on a winning streak but given how the team has performed recently, that scenario is looking grimmer by the day. Milan's objective this season was to finish in the top 4 in order to secure Champions League football next season but with one more match played than their rivals they are trailing cross-town rivals Inter and Roma by 11 points who currently share that 4th spot. If Spalletti and Di Francesco lead their respective teams to victory in their respective fixtures, the deficit to that 4th place will be 14 points before December has even begun. At this point it is almost safe to say that if Milan want to play in the Champions League next season, they have to win the only European title they lack, namely the Europa League and that way repeat Manchester United's feat from last season. A tournament that Milan are in serious risk of missing out on next season too as Sampdoria are currently occupying that 6th and final Europa League spot 4 points clear of the Rossoneri in 7th.

Speculation has been rife regarding the future of Vincenzo Montella as Milan's head coach with both Fassone and Mirabelli having expressed their support and faith in the former Fiorentina coach. However, Milan need to do something to turn things around and they need to do it fast because at this rate the Rossoneri could be out of contention for even the Europa League spots before Christmas.

Nima Tavallaey Roodsari