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Tag: AC MILAN

  • Serie A: Ibrahimovic scores first goal since his return to Milan

    Serie A: Ibrahimovic scores first goal since his return to Milan

    Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored his first goal for AC Milan since rejoining the club as they eased past Cagliari.

    Rafael Leao had given the Rossoneri the lead just after half-time before Ibrahimovic, starting for the first time since his return, doubled their advantage with a left-footed strike.

    The former LA Galaxy and Sweden striker had another goal ruled out for offside.

    Ibrahimovic, 38, signed a six-month deal at the Serie A side in December, with the option of another season.

    He scored 42 goals in 61 league games for the club between 2010 and 2012.

    It was AC Milan’s first win since early December and they remain 20 points behind league leaders Inter Milan.

  • Zlatan Ibrahimovic returns to AC Milan

    Zlatan Ibrahimovic has returned to AC Milan for a final challenge seeking to prove that he remains the superstar he claims to be.

    The 38-year-old Swedish striker signed a six-month contract with the struggling Italian giants on Friday vowing to help rescue their season.

    “I’m coming back to a club I hugely respect and to the city of Milan I love,” he said.

    “I’ll fight together with my teammates to change the course of this season. I will do everything to make it happen.”

    Ibrahimovic knows the game in Italy, having played for three different Italian clubs.

    He first joined Juventus in 2004, moving on to Inter Milan after the match-fixing scandal in 2006, then arriving at AC Milan in 2010 on loan before making the move permanent.

    In 85 games for AC Milan over two seasons, Ibrahimovic scored 56 goals.

    One of the most successful clubs in the world, AC Milan are 11th in the league just seven points above relegation.

    The club have come up short in their attacking options with just 16 goals in 17 games.

    Ibrahimovic left Los Angeles Galaxy last month after a two-year stay and 52 goals in 56 games, leaving him free to sign with another club.

    Milan must hope that showy Swede, never far from the headlines, will bring some punch and a winning mentality to the locker room.

  • Serie A: AC Milan suffer heaviest defeat since 1998

    AC Milan suffered their heaviest defeat for more than 21 years as they were thrashed 5-0 by Atalanta in Serie A.

    Stefano Pioli’s side are 10th in the table and could go into Christmas in the bottom half if Sassuolo or Bologna win later on Sunday.

    Alejandro Gomez scored a stunning opener, nutmegging Andrea Conti before firing home, and Atalanta’s final three goals came in the last half hour.

    Mario Pasalic scored and Josip Ilicic netted twice before Luis Muriel struck.

    Atalanta, who are in the Champions League knockout stages, rise to fifth in the table.

    Milan had not lost by five goals in any competition since being beaten 5-0 by Roma in May 1998.

    Pioli, the club’s third manager of 2019, said: “This cannot be the real Milan.

    “[We] approached the match in the wrong way and you just can’t afford to do that against this team.

    “Today’s performance was seriously insufficient. I expected a reaction from us in the second half but it didn’t come. In fact, we were even worse.”

  • AC Milan, Inter Milan struggle to overcome opposition to plans to replace San Siro

    AC Milan, Inter Milan struggle to overcome opposition to plans to replace San Siro

    Milan’s football clubs and the city municipality are in talks to try to resolve a dispute over plans for a new stadium to replace the nearly century-old San Siro arena.

    Serie A’s clubs AC Milan and Internazionale FC in July filed a request to build a new jointly-owned 60,000-seat stadium in the San Siro area.

    Both clubs are respectively owned by U.S. fund Elliott and Chinese electronic retailer Suning.

    The new stadium is the key element in a wider real estate plan for the district, which includes tearing down the historic San Siro arena, dubbed “La Scala del Calcio’’.

    AC Milan and Inter Milan see a new modern arena as a crucial way to boost their revenues.

    Both clubs’ revenues are lagging behind those of their peers who own their home grounds, such as Serie A rival Juventus FC and many other European top football clubs.

    But the Milan municipality, which owns San Siro and has to give its approval to the plan, has so far shown little enthusiasm for the 1.2 billion euro project.

    Sources have said Goldman Sachs is ready to bankroll the project.

    Goldman Sachs did not respond to a request for comment.

    Milan’s mayor Giuseppe Sala has repeatedly cast doubt over the idea of knocking down the three-ring arena that opened in 1926.

    It has undergone several restorations over the years to reach its current 80,000 capacity.

    However, both clubs are reluctant to use a revamped San Siro for their matches in the future, saying further restoration would be costly and ineffective.

    Representatives of both clubs and Milan local authorities discussed on Tuesday the possibility of keeping the San Siro as a venue for professional football matches beside the new stadium.

    But the clubs said in a statement after the meeting that the co-existence of two professional sports facilities in the area would not be sustainable.

    They cited a study prepared by an adviser.

    The Milan municipality was not immediately available to comment.

    The two clubs said they had accepted a request by city representatives to assess alternative options for San Siro.

    These may include tearing down most of the old arena and keeping only part of the stands as a kind of city landmark, two sources close to the matter said.

  • Serie A: Roma deepen AC Milan crisis with crucial victory

    Serie A: Roma deepen AC Milan crisis with crucial victory

    AS Roma moved into fifth place in Serie A with a 2-1 win over AC Milan at the Stadio Olimpico on Sunday to continue the visitors’ crisis.

    Edin Dzeko headed the hosts in front in the first half before Theo Hernandez drew Milan level after the break.

    Nicolo Zaniolo struck the winner after 59 minutes to send Roma above Cagliari into fifth on 16 points, one behind Napoli in the fourth and final Champions League spot.

    Stefano Pioli has picked up one point from his first two games since succeeding the sacked Marco Giampaolo as Milan coach and his side are 12th with 10 points, having won just one of their last six games.

  • Serie A: AC Milan appoints new manager

    Serie A: AC Milan appoints new manager

    AC Milan have appointed Stefano Pioli as their new manager, following Marco Giampaolo’s sacking on Tuesday after just three and a half months in charge.

    Italian Pioli, 53, is the Rossoneri’s ninth full-time manager since they last won the Serie A title in 2011.

    The hashtag #PioliOut was the top trend on Twitter in Italy on Tuesday, with fans unhappy at the prospect of his appointment.

    Milan are 13th in Serie A, three points above the relegation zone.

    Milan beat Genoa 2-1 on Saturday after Pepe Reina saved a penalty in injury time for only their third win in their opening seven games and it followed three successive defeats before that, against rivals Inter, Torino and Fiorentina.

    Giampaolo, 52, succeeded Gennaro Gattuso in June after the former Italy midfielder quit because Milan missed out on Champions League qualification.

    He had left Sampdoria at the end of last season after guiding them to a ninth-placed finish in Serie A.

    Former Inter Milan, Fiorentina and Lazio manager Pioli has signed a two-year deal at the San Siro.

    AC Milan, seven-time champions of Europe, have not played in the Champions League since 2013-14.

    The club would have qualified for this year’s Europa League but are currently serving a one-year ban from European football over breaches of Financial Fair Play rules.

  • AC Milan sack coach after poor start to season

    AC Milan sack coach after poor start to season

    AC Milan have sacked manager Marco Giampaolo after only three and a half months in charge because of a poor start to the season.

    Milan are 13th in Serie A, three points above the relegation zone, after three wins in their first seven games.

    Giampaolo, 52, succeeded Gennaro Gattuso in June after the former Italy midfielder quit because Milan missed out on Champions League qualification.

    Former Inter Milan boss Stefano Pioli has been linked with the role.

    The hashtag #PioliOut was the top trend on Twitter in Italy on Tuesday, with fans unhappy at Pioli being reportedly set to take over.

    “The club is grateful to Marco for the work carried out and wishes him all the best to come in his professional career,” said AC Milan in a statement.

    Milan beat Genoa 2-1 on Saturday after Pepe Reina saved a penalty in injury time, but had three successive defeats before that, against rivals Inter, Torino and Fiorentina.

    Giampaolo left Sampdoria at the end of last season after guiding them to a ninth-placed finish in Serie A.

    AC Milan, seven-time champions of Europe, have not played in the Champions League since 2013-14 and last won the Serie A title in 2011.

    The club would have qualified for this year’s Europa League but are currently serving a one-year ban from European football over breaches of Financial Fair Play rules.

  • Piatek penalty kick gives Milan win over 10-man Verona

    Piatek penalty kick gives Milan win over 10-man Verona

    AC Milan’s Krzysztof Piatek returned to the starting line-up and converted the winner with a penalty kick in a hard-fought 1-0 victory at 10-man Hellas Verona in Serie A on Sunday.

    The Polish striker was dropped by coach Marco Giampaolo for the win over Brescia before the international break, but he led the line at the Stadio Marc’Antonio Bentegodi and opened his account for the season in a nervy win.

    Verona debutant Mariusz Stepinski was shown a straight red card for a high boot after 21 minutes but the promoted hosts put in a spirited performance after going a man down.

    Piatek went into the game with one goal in his last nine league appearances, but he made no mistake from the penalty kick spot in the 68th minute after Koray Gunter was penalised for handball.

    Davide Calabria was sent off for AC Milan deep in stoppage time but the visitors held on to climb to seventh place on six points, two points ahead of 11th-placed Verona.

  • AC Milan banned from Europe for a year

    AC Milan banned from Europe for a year

    AC Milan have struck a deal with Uefa to serve a one-year ban from European football over breaches of Financial Fair Play rules.

    The club, which finished fifth in Italy’s Serie A, will miss next season’s Europa League.

    Uefa will end its proceedings against the Italians for overspending, said the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas).

    “AC Milan is excluded from Uefa club competitions of the sporting season 2019-2020,” said Cas.

    Milan’s ban means AS Roma, who came sixth in the standings, move up to the Europa League group stage while their place in the qualifying rounds is taken by seventh-placed Torino.

    Seven-time European champions Milan finished one point behind local rivals Inter, who took the final Champions League qualifying place.

    Milan previously successfully appealed against a two-year ban imposed by Uefa last summer after being found guilty of breaking spending rules between 2015 and 2017.

    Under Uefa regulations, any club making losses beyond the permitted limits over a three-year period faces possible sanctions, and in some circumstances, a ban.

    Milan were able to take part in last season’s Europa League – going out in the group stage – after appealing to Cas, persuading it that their finances would improve under new ownership.

    BBC

  • Serie A: San Siro Stadium to be demolished

    Serie A: San Siro Stadium to be demolished

    The San Siro, home of Italian giants AC and Inter Milan and one of European football’s most iconic stadiums, is set to be demolished.

    The 80,018-seater stadium will be replaced by a new ground that is being built next door. Both AC and Inter Milan will continue to play in the San Siro while the new stadium is constructed.

    AC Milan president Paolo Scaroni and Inter Milan chief executive Alessandro Antonello confirmed the news on Monday.

    Milan have played at San Siro since it was opened in 1926, while Inter moved in 19 years later. It also occasionally hosts some of the Italian national side’s home matches.

    Speaking earlier this month, the mayor of Milan, Beppe Sala said: “Building a new stadium is a very expensive undertaking, but I don’t want to influence anything.

    “I’m waiting to see the proposal from Inter and Milan. Hopefully it’ll arrive before the holidays. In my opinion, the San Siro is a wonderful facility.”