Xtratime Community banner

Historical Crises at Milan

4K views 51 replies 21 participants last post by  Jeffrey 
#1 · (Edited)
I had some free time due to a delayed plane (with wifi) at an airport and was just looking at some stats about consecutive seasons in which we have done poorly in the League -- generally I think of doing poorly as in finishing the season around or lower than 6th.

Milan's worst consecutive runs of seasons, in chronological order, have been:

- Between 1923 and 1926 (8th, 8th, 7th) in what was a generally not great decade;

- Between 1929 and 1931 (11th and 12th);

- Between 1932 and 1936 (11th, 9th, 10th, 11th);

- Between 1938 and 1940 (9th and 8th, but also a Coppa Semi Final);

- Between 1941 and 1943 (10th and 6th, but also went to Coppa Final);

- Between 1965 and 1967 (7th and 8th but we won the Coppa);

- We were relegated twice, first in 1979-80 and then in 1981-1982, first because of the Totonero Scandal, and then because we sucked. We did win Serie B immediately after each relegation, and then were mediocre-ish between 1983 and 1987 (6th, 5th, 7th, 5th). We did win the Mitropa Cup, at that time not such a big deal, during the second relegation season.

- Between 1996 and 1998 (10th and 11th, but went to a Coppa Final);

- Between 2013 and 2019 (8th, 10th, 7th, 6th, 6th and 5th; went to two Coppa Finals, one of which was a humiliating defeat to Juventus, and won a Super Coppa).


All in all, this obviously is not as bad as our very worst crises, but it's pretty damn bad. We've been there and have come back stronger, and it's actually not that uncommon. At the same time, we actually have not been there that many times; not without winning anything like a Cup at least. We are talking about nine of these crises in more than 110 total seasons; less that one crisis per decade. Of course every time it's different, but it would be interesting to see those periods with more details, for example if there's some kind of pattern of rebuilding after each one, or if they follow a particular kind of event (i.e. Rivera retiring or Baresi getting injured).
 
See less See more
#6 ·
Not sure about what you mean about "through club football", but you're probably right about the financial planning part. That's probably become a bigger thing now though, since finance has also become more complex and overall more important in society overall and in football.
 
#3 ·
Hmm interesting, thanks for doing the research.

So this isn't the biggest crisis, but the question is if we've earlier been this far away from the top in terms of squad quality? As things go now, I can't see us winning the Coppa for an example and would be very happy for even an EL spot. But considering how we've been playing so far, not even that looks that likely.
 
#5 ·
the question is if we've earlier been this far away from the top in terms of squad quality?
True, but the top teams are not particularly good, at least now that Juve seems to have fallen from grace. Roma, Napoli, Inter, Fiore are not among the best teams in Europe like top teams in Italy were pretty much until this last decade.
 
#7 ·
I'll get :drunk: :stoned: just not celebrating
 
#9 ·
In Italy, club cycles are reflective of those of owners of the clubs... if the owner makes alot of money from his own personal business empire and wealth then that is reflected on the club as funds become almost unlimited, the nature of business is different for each owner.. for example the Agnellis arent doing as bad as Berlusconi and Moratti as Exorr and Fiat are having good profits, I think if Moratti didnt sell the club Inter would still be in a similar position to Milan... the difference between Roma and Lazio is obviously the owner and how much he wants to invest in the club... Lazio's best years were under Sergio Cragnotti he came and changed history in Lazio, investing in big players, and the club's downfall started when he left....

That is one part, another reason for such cycles or 'crises' is when a key figure such as a high profile manager or player leaves, we saw that in this era when Ferguson left Man United....

Milan will be back, it is just a matter of time..
 
#12 ·
And when they return, they won't be # 2 anymore but more than likely # 3 or perhaps #4…behind the likes of:

1.REAL MADRID
2. Barcelona
3. Bayern
 
#13 ·
This isn't the worst Milan ever. We'll need two-three more years of disastrous results to achieve that. Just think of us between 1932 and 1936 (11th, 9th, 10th, 11th) (source: van). Ok, you would have to be 90 or older to remember, but still ...
 
#15 ·
Yeah I just moved it here as it certainly made more sense than having it in the "Say something nice" thread. That surely was our truly deepest crisis ever, only time Milan got relegated on the field.
 
#18 ·
Continuing on what Johan said. This team has been in the top 3 in wages for the past 3 years and #2 in revenue. And if you look at what some other teams are spending(and still ending up ahead of Milan) not only is this the worst period, but a total disaster.
 
#22 ·
Welcome back D!

Nic, your post is kind of touching on many points but let me address the first one. Milan has always gone for the CL, the Serie A has almost been considered provincial. The CL is harder to win than the league, the opposition is tougher and just one small misstep and you're gone. Silvio has always, well in the good old days, wanted Milan to go up against the best and the best are in the CL. My fondest memories are from the CL games, not the league games.

That's what I don't get, we haven't been protagonists in Europe in a long time now and I'm surprised that it doesn't seem to bother Berlusconi. 3 years without Europe for a club of Milan's history is awful. We're becoming the new Liverpool.
 
#23 ·
What I meant was simply that in spite of Champions League trophy barren periods, each of those teams kept winning, and because of that maintained a winning mentality.

I personally don’t subscribe to the notion that Champions League is above all other titles. Don’t get me wrong, I love the tournament because it is shorter and most of the games matter. However as you said it is often tiny things that decide who wins it. Juventus may not have lifted the trophy since 1996, but they managed to reach the final four times since then. Does the fact that we won a penalty shootout against them and squeezed past Liverpool really mean that we are somehow better than them? You might call it our DNA, or it might be bad luck on Juventus’ part. We ought to have won it back in 2004, our team was in it’s prime, and yet we crumbled against Deportivo, just like we did the following year against Liverpool, is that also because of our DNA?

My point is simply that Milan fans might care more about that title than any other title, that’s fine I guess. But what I don’t get is the notion that the other teams should look to us with envy us for winning those. I personally don’t believe that Barca or Juventus would switch with us, and stand in the mess that we are in at the moment, just to have a few more Champions League trophies in the cabinet. They are objectively better clubs at this point, and they are set on winning trophies for years to come, we on the other hand have to look back that those victories for comfort, because the road ahead of us is long, with no major trophy in sight.
 
#26 ·
OT:

I actually challenge the fact that "Barcelona has always been successful," (Nicholas). Until the Johan Cruyff revolution an era, i.e. 1991 title, Barcelona had 10 domestic titles and no UCL. Between 1960 and 1991, they had TWO ... a total of TWO Spanish titles.
 
#27 ·
Of course you do. Again I ask you to stop trying to twist words. The original claim was "Barca was nothing till 10 years or so ago"
I quoted a specific number of titles that they had won up until 10 years ago. That number disproves Lucianos original claim, unless you only count Champions League titles. You then decide to only count until the beginning of the Cruyff (managerial) era, and disregard a slew titles such as spanish cups and Cup Winners Cups. That has nothing to do with my answer to Luciano’s question. To deny that Barcelona has been a a succesful and prestigious club for ages is frankly a ridiculous.
 
#34 ·
I am with Bono here on Barca.
Yes they are playing beautiful football for the past few seasons now. But they are never successful if compared to RM.

It's about the same comparison which I always argue with my EPL friends that Liverpool is more successful than Man Utd.

Then again, I see things from the CL perspective as it's the best comparison between different leagues on who is more successful.
I can't stand it if RM gonna lift their 11 CL title in our home ground in a couple of days. I will be rooting for A Madrid although I hate their coach.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#35 ·
Saying "But they are never successful if compared to RM" is profoundly inaccurate in 2016 and over the past 10 to 20 years. They are right now! All i am saying is that Barca was not a highly successful club in terms of winning big and on regular basis until early 90s.
 
#37 ·
I am not sure what you are saying tbh.

Since 1991 (so 25 years) Barcelona have won 4 UCL and 14 Spanish titles. that is continuous almost unprecedented success. That is success! Even Milan dont have so much in that period ;)
In the previous 25/30 years (1960-1990) Barca have won Zero UCL and two Spanish Titles. That was NOT success no matter what.
 
#38 · (Edited)
Milan had a period of 43 years with no league titles or Champions League trophy, does that make us less successful? Instead of talking about Milan compared to other grand clubs, which is where this started, it has become a pointless discussion about semantics and how many years you have to go back before you will call another club succesful. It doesn't really matter if it's 10 years or 25 years, by all means Real Madrid, Barca and Juventus are all objectively better clubs today, with much brighter futures. Where to go from here is s lot more interesting.
 
#39 ·
I'm back too. Sorry I haven't been logging in and contributing (and doing my job), I've been mostly in the Amazon, moving around a lot, with shitty to non-existant internet connection and very little access to Milan games. Now I'm in a nice airbnb in Belém do Pará, so I can connect more often.


Anyway, so sad to see this is on of the first threads that pops up when I look at the forum, and that indeed it needed too be updated. No Europe, no excitement, and no signs of progress except for a few decent games (I did manage to watch the Coppa Final) other than a (Chinese) Deus-ex-machina.
 
#41 ·
Sounds like an awesome trip, hope you're enjoying yourself.

It's pretty telling that we all are hoping for a sale, there is simply no trust that Silvio and Galliani are willing and able to pull us out of this by themselves. They tried this year and failed miserably with their investments and decisions. Silvio also seems tired of throwing money at Milan and that's understandable frankly.
 
#42 ·
I've just updated the first post with this season's info. Seems like we are making progress with our sixth place finish, European Qualification, and Super Coppa triumph.

All of this of course pales in comparison to the change of management, the fresh injection of cash, and what has a very expeditious and, depending on who you ask, promising start of the transfer market.

Perhaps the end of a historical crisis approaches.
 
#43 ·
OP updated again.

The crisis is not over, and Fifa Fair Play might mean we won't be able to compete in Europe's second-rate competition again or perhaps buy any urgently needed reinforcements. The financial and institutional situations remains extremely worrying, since there still are countless rumors about issues with out debts and the stability of the Chinese ownership. Volatile is a word that comes to mind.

This is now becoming one of the longest crises in Milan's glorious history, however not one of the deepest by some margin. That is, of course, unless the financial/institutional side completely implodes.

On the bright side, the squad is young and combines players with potential with some decent, experienced players. The manager has done very well for the most part, but still is very much unproven. However, two of the best players are constantly rumored to leave.
 
#44 ·
I was thinking of starting a new thread but I'm glad you resurrected this one - it does, after all, have an apt title.

The brand is suffering a great deal. When you have insolvency of this magnitude combined with not being able to compete at any meaningful European level for almost a decade, then it's at that point UEFA authorities are perfectly comfortable making an example of you. Their thinking is that Milan hasn't been part of the European narrative for a long time so who will object?

It appears that the smoke signals were right with regards to the new ownership. I originally thought that some of these Italian journalists who were reporting on the situation were being too pessimistic and that they perhaps had a prejudice for non-Italian investors in calcio. To their credit, it would seem that their concerns have been validated and now the likelihood of Milan being acquired by its debt holder - 'Elliot Management' in this case - is very high.

I wish I could say that this murky situation had a light at the end of the tunnel, but until I see it resolved then this "project" is going to fall flat on its face.

It would have been nice if this past season was a happy distraction but it turned out to be mostly disappointing - too much underachieving by a group of players that should be much better on paper...
 
  • Like
Reactions: van
#47 ·
Updated.

This is really getting to become our longest crisis in history. No CL again. Uncertainty with FFP. The ownership seems decent: even if it's supposed to be a transitional one it has brought stability and injected funds. Now the management need to prove themselves this summer. Gazidis, Leo and Maldini, or Gazidis and whoever he brings.

Above all need, we need a manager who can really lead this club for several years. All these years of crises have had that in common.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top