Milan supremo, Silvio Berlusconi, has made it very clear that after the team’s Scudetto triumph the Rossoneri will be turning their eye towards the Champions League. The European Cup has always been the Holy Grail as well as the platform onto which much of Milan’s success has been built. Seven European Cups [second only to Real Madrid] are testament to that as well as Berlusconi’s ambition to put down a marker for his club through domination in Europe’s greatest club competition. In this coming season however, we must ask if the Rossoneri are really equipped to make an impact in Europe.

The answer to this question – were the mercato to end today – is no. The current squad would struggle to make a good enough Champions League run on the simple fact that there exists an important weakness in this current team. The weakness in question has to do with the team’s fluency in and around the middle of the pitch. There is a problem of comfortably dictating the tempo of the game through the midfield with Milan. Aging legs are mostly the reason for this when we consider that Milan’s midfield trio is composed of Mark van Bommel, Clarence Seedorf, and Gennaro Gattuso. All are great players who excelled in their roles last season but their athletic capabilities are an issue when playing in Europe. A player who can put his foot on the ball, carry it forward a bit and ping a pass is what’s needed. Effectively Milan need a mezzala (box-to-box midfielder) to start in Seedorf’s role on the left of midfield. The Dutchman did fantastically well last year and has been in great form this pre-season, but his stamina over the course of a long season as well as fact Milan will be fighting on multiple fronts are concerns.

In addition to the need for a competent passing midfielder, a proper trequartista (playmaker) will be needed if Milan are to go deep in Europe. For much of the general clamor around modern football that the classic no.10 has died, it by no means translates into the fact that they might be ineffectual. I use our neighbors on the blue side of the San Siro as a prime example of this when Jose Mourinho fought long and hard to convince Massimo Moratti to acquire him a trequartista (playmaker). Wesley Sneijder was brought in and Inter Milan went on to win an unprecedented [in Italy] treble, with Sneijder very much at the center of that success. Through much of last season, Kevin Prince Boateng operated in that role and did very well. He is a bit of an unorthodox trequartista however in that his piercing runs and physicality are his best assets, next to a decent passing ability as well as good technical ability. Boateng offers a lot in that role in the sense where Milan become more direct and forceful with Boateng on the pitch. The fact that Boateng works a lot on the defensive side of the game also means that he will be very useful in home legs of Champions League games. A trequartista who can play that all-important defense-splitting pass and can unlock defenses with his vision and passing is what’s needed in my opinion however for Milan to go deep in Champions League.

Milan’s best asset right now to go deep in Europe is their defense however. Allegri has really created a good and balanced defensive setup and his work will go a long way to help Milan along their way. I have always been a staunch believer that great defenses are what take you deep in tournaments at the highest level. Indeed everyone is capable of scoring goals [to some extent], but defending well is what the great teams do. With the maturing of Thiago Silva, Milan boast of one of the best defenders in Europe at the moment. I believe Alessandro Nesta still has it within himself to give another big season in Europe, barring injuries of course. As for Abate, he has improved tremendously in his defending under the guidance of Allegri and tutelage of Mauro Tassotti. Taiwo is another great addition who will make a difference in Europe for his athletic ability, pace & counter-attacking capacity. Behind them is the always-consistent Christian Abbiati, who can be a game-winner by himself. The one key player however will be one Milan was deprived of for his having been cup-tied: Mark van Bommel. The Dutchman will sit right in front of the defense and I believe that his ability to break up attacks and experience at the highest level will be a critical asset for Milan in their European campaign.

The quest for the European Cup will be a long and difficult one. The addition of two more quality players, in the mezzala and trequartista positions, will be crucial to any chance Milan have to go deep in Europe. Of course Milan, even with those additions, are still miles away from the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona but the issue is that such additions would allow Milan to at least compete. What is for sure though is that Milan boast of one important ace-in-the-hole, which is Zlatan Ibrahimovic of course and whether the Swede can have a big season in Europe. In conclusion, and given Berlusconi’s ambitions, anything less than a quarterfinal berth will have to be seen as a failure while a couple more midfield additions before the end of the mercato could spell a semi-final appearance. From there, anything is possible.