Milan Obsession

Remember when Milan were in third place and could have gone four points clear? But they didn’t? That same sense of fear has left us clinging to fourth place by a mere point with five games to go. As if that weren’t hard enough for us fans, questioning players, coach, and more, there have been way too many off the pitch distractions, too. At a crucial point in our season, it leaves us clinging to fourth. There was so much to discuss this time, and even a couple of rants. Jonathan and I talked about: News of the Week: Tapiro d’Oro, Enzo Bearzot award, UEFA at it again, Paid Spectators Match Reviews: review of latest Serie A match, discussion of related issues Coming up: upcoming matches

The loss to Inter was soul crushing, then we had to sit through the International Break, only to have our hopes dashed in the first minute against Sampdoria. Despite previous optimism, with so many other teams fighting for top four, it is very clear that Milan’s Champions League berth is not as solid as it seemed only a few short weeks ago. Unless Gattuso makes some productive changes soon, Milan are in hot water.   Joining our guest list of Milan fans from all over the world this time was Sabrina. You can follow Sabrina on Twitter @SabriB10, and you should definitely check out her blog Calcio Crazy. Along with Jonathan, we chatted about: Lightning Round: quick questions about favorites News of the Week: International break, Inter suck, actual fines, Sheva’s heir, results, election, ICC tournament, young squad, revenue issues, Pepe Reina’s week Match Reviews: review of latest Serie A match Coming up: upcoming matches and International Break Thanks again to Sabrina for braving the discussion after the Sampdo

This was a tough podcast to record, following the tragic Derby loss. However after venting about what went wrong and all of the darkness of that match, we did manage to discuss some light that will hopefully make Milan’s future that much brighter. Braving the Derby loss was our President of the Curva Sud America, Francesco. For his bravery alone, please give him a follow on Twitter @FrancescoPetra8. Jonathan was back from injury, too, so all of us chatted about: Lightning Round: quick questions about favorites News of the Week: stadium news, new baby, Scaroni in Serie A, Milan Glorie, record sales, new partnership, quote of the week Match Reviews: reviews of recent Serie A matches Maldini Dynasty: Will the Primavera’s #10 be Milan’s next #3? Coming up: upcoming matches and International Break Thanks again to Francesco for braving the post derby conversation. Please give him a follow on Twitter @FrancescoPetra8

With Milan in third place, everyone is going crazy for Milan. It may be a little premature, as recent performances show that the team’s mentality is still fragile. In the podcast that was recorded right after the Sassuolo match and  nearly didn’t make it to air because of technical difficulties, we talked about changes at the club, Milan’s recent form, as well as our rise on the table. And, of course, why everyone is crazy for Milan. Jonathan was literally on the injured list for this one, but luckily, Federico was still available for the starting lineup. Follow him on Twitter @fefinho83 and also give his Milan Club Buenos Aires a follow @MilanClubBAires. We chatted about: Lightning Round: quick questions about favorites News of the Week: double value, Fondazione Milan, new leadership, leaked Milan kits, Paqueta callup, return of Caldara Match Reviews: reviews of recent Serie A and Coppa Italia matches Higuain Tribute: recycling and gratitude Coming up: upcoming matches Thanks again to recycling legend Fede

By some miracle, Milan are still in fourth place. Morale is high, especially with the performances of a few individuals. Still, there is plenty to discuss and much to be improved within the team. And no one knows better what those things are than the most devout of Milan fans. Good Times. The most devout of Milan fans includes podcast favorites Pete and David. You can follow Pete on Twitter @PDAcquaviva for his wisdom and follow David @DavidLSwan for his humor. Or is that reverse? The four of us wisely laughed about: Lightning Round: quick questions about favorites News of the Week: UEFA and ECA, making babies, Valentine love, new kit, Inter schadenfreude Match Reviews: reviews of recent Serie A matches Donnarumma Form: stats and discussion Midfield Form: talking Bakayoko and more Coming up: upcoming matches Thanks again to both Pete and David for both making us think and making us laugh. For more wit and wisdom, follow them on Twitter @PDAcquaviva and@DavidLSwan.

Milan are still in fourth place, even if they still struggle to take advantage of opposition teams dropping points and widen the gap. But confidence is growing, the a number of clean sheets is growing, and we finally have a competent management. Which is why we had the best January mercato ever. Not only is it our first January mercato in so very long, but we truly strengthened the squad to make us more competitive, and we also lowered our wage bill at the same time.   Because we recorded during the absolute worst Super Bowl game in history, our guests were all sitting in shock while Jonathan and I talked about all things Milan. Our discussion included: News of the Week: Actual respect, respect fail, benevolence, clean sheets, European top ten, Mihajlovic for the win, Elaine’s luscious schadenfreude week Match Reviews: reviews of recent Serie A and Coppa Italia matches January Mercato: all of the ins and outs of this mercato Coming up: upcoming matches

Milan are back in fourth place, and despite a heartbreaking Supercoppa loss, seem bound and determined to fight for fourth, against all odds. This week, we looked more in depth at Gattuso and what kind of future he might have at the club. In an all-Americ

No one is more harsh on a team or its players than the team’s own fans, and that is why we do midseason player ratings. Fans got a little relief after a much needed win against the mighty SPAL, having survived the wreckage of a tedious December tailspin. Luckily, the players were rated for their entire season’s performances. For some fresh perspective this midseason, we turned to a new guest, Walid. Follow him on Twitter @Silm_213 . We chatted about: News of the Week: Fassone irony, captain fine, heartless move, more appealing, year in a number, transfer win, return of Strinic Match Reviews: reviews of recent matches Midseason Ratings: discussing and rating the players Coming up: upcoming matches and moral issues Thanks again to Walid for sharing his passion and opinions about Milan. Please give him a follow on Twitter for more wisdom @Silm_213

Milan are celebrating their 119th birthday having just crashed out of the Europa League and then being slapped with sanctions from UEFA. Not the birthday gifts we were hoping for, but at least not playing in the Europa League might help curb our injury crisis. It’s enough to give anyone the holiday blues. With nothing to celebrate, we needed twice the star power, so we invited both David and Pete to be on the podcast this time. You can follow David @DavidLSwan on Twitter and Pete at @PDAcquaviva on Twitter. Together, we lamented and laughed about: News of the Week: new player, small profit, new head of scouting, new CEO, nomination, godless January, Curva milestone, happy birthday Match Reviews: reviews of recent matches FFP Sanctions: discussing the new sanctions Coming up: upcoming matches, lesson in timezones Thanks again to both David and Pete for blessing us with their wit and wisdom. To further bless your lives, follow them on Twitter @DavidLSwan and @PDAcquaviva.

Gattuso just celebrated his first year as Milan’s head coach, so of course his track record has been under the microscope. But with recent results and performances improving, the microscope is looking pretty favorably at him. Much of the attention this week is turning towards Milan’s new CEO, Ivan Gazidis. Certainly, there is always plenty to talk about at Milan. This conversation needed some genius, so we obviously invited Jovan to join us. We discussed all things Milan, especially: News of the Week: indestructible defender, political statements, UEFA list, surgery news, scoring savant, 4th place! Match Reviews: reviews of recent matches Welcome Gazidis: a new CEO for Milan Gattuso’s First Year: strengths and weaknesses Coming up: upcoming matches Thanks again to Jovan for sharing his genius with us. Beware of exceptional genius wandering at large around Montenegro.

From Injury emergency to crisis to a full blown injury apocalypse, our season has drastically changed for the worse. Especially for so many of our players, who are personally feeling the pain of this apocalypse. We are already seeing the short term impact of these injuries, but they will also have long term ramifications as well. We needed a true Milan fan to discuss our suffering, so we turned to Francesco. You can find out more about Francesco by following him on Twitter @FrancescoPetra8. Amidst the pain, we talked about: News of the Week: new clothes, strange ban, Golden Boy, new dad, new CEO, awards, waiting for sanctions Match Reviews: reviews of recent matches Injury Apocalypse: why so many injuries so soon? Coming up: upcoming matches  Thanks again to Francesco for suffering with us yet again. Please follow him on Twitter @FrancescoPetra8 to suffer along with him.

Like a most improbable dream, Milan are in fourth place right now. Which is a huge shift from recent years and shows that while our football may not be pretty, in fact it may be really frustrating at times, it is more effective than it looks. And that Champions League objective might not be quite so far away as it has seemed all of these years without it.  With a win, a clean sheet, and fourth place all happening simultaneously, sometimes people get lost in the celebrations. That was clearly the case with our guest this week, so Jonathan and I took the reins once again. We discussed: News of the Week: new partner, best in form player, coach Oddo, fortress, Conti comeback, Zlatan Match Reviews: reviews of recent matches Injury Crisis: why so many injuries so soon? Coming up: upcoming matches

Any Milan fan that watched the Derby probably feels that all is lost. Coming off of an international break during which the financials were released from Yonghong Li’s Milan, it’s certainly not a fun time to talk about Milan. But with or without the aid of alcohol, those who bleed red and black must carry on. You’re welcome. There was a man down after that Derby, so my cohost and I were forced to carry on alone this week. Despite our sorrows, immediately after the Derby, we talked about: News of the Week: Trophee Kopa, more changes, new player agreement, ciao again Gandini, Festival dello Sport, another Milan derby, no passport for you, Montolivo’s addition, some bald guy Match Review: review of the Derby The Finances of the Chinese Era: mindboggling numbers Coming up: upcoming matches

Milan have three wins in a row, and I couldn't be more frightened. Why? Because we cannot keep a clean sheet to save our lives. It’s like having an amazing dinner, but knowing you’re going to get mugged on the way home. Not being able to keep 90 minutes of mentality is already making our results shaky, but stand to pull the rug out from beneath us in the long run. And it’s not just one game, it’s happening over and over again. An early game and podcast needed exceptional wisdom, so of course we asked Pete to join us. To find more of his wisdom, follow him on Twitter @PDAcquaviva. After the Chievo game, we chatted about: News of the Week: Debt free, Ancelotti trolls, Golden Boy, whatever with loyalty, the comeback kid, Milan Foundation, Italy callups Match Reviews: review of recent matches Clean Sheet Crisis: why we concede Coming up: upcoming matches Thanks again to Pete for Cutrone. Follow him on Twitter @PDAcquaviva for more brilliant gifts and wisdom.

Milan·s performances and results recently are lacking, but things are improving off the pitch. The announcement that Ivan Gazidis is finally going to come to the club as CEO was contrasted by lackluster performances on the pitch. Gattuso·s lack of exper

The clouds have truly lifted at Milanello, and the source of that bright shining light is not the sun, but rather the legendary Paolo Maldini. His mere presence has changed the atmosphere at and around the club. Victory is that much sweeter when he is watching his beloved team play as a director, where he should have been since he retired. He’s helped everyone raise their levels already, even Gattuso. That is the power of Maldini.   Even our guests were on International Break this week. But in their absence, we discussed: News of the Week: Europa League, NT duty, wage bills, players out, Conti’s return, the armband fiasco Match Review: review of the Roma victory Gattuso Tactics: not an oxymoron Legends return: the Maldini effect Coming up: upcoming matches   Please try to keep yourself together for the rest of the break… Milan will be returning before you know it!

One game into the season and the media has already called for Gattuso’s head. Amidst all of the ridiculous hyperbole of the media and the fans, we try to sort through what actually happened in the match and perhaps apply a more realistic view of what might happen this season, particularly with our grinta-filled coach.  Our guest this time was the amazing Debopam, who is one of the staff at goaldentimes.org. You can follow him on Twitter @rossoneri, and you should definitely check out the book “Tiro: A Football Odyssey from Amazon to Alps.” For this podcast, we talked about: News of the Week: UEFA honor, football helping out, dysfunctional calcio Match Review: review of recent match Gattuso: Discussing the Mister Coming up: upcoming matches  Thanks again to Debopam for his great conversation. Follow him on Twitter @rossoneri and check out goaldentimes.org. For a real football treat, pick up “Tiro: A Football Odyssey from Amazon to Alps.”

OFFICIAL: The Milan Obsession Podcast has signed Jonathan to a longterm contract as cohost. Details of the contract were undisclosed. Following Leonardo’s example, we have signed a permanent cohost, and expect the podcast to also qualify for the Champions League of podcasts this season. So while we were under the influence of extreme optimism, we previewed the new season with unicorns and rainbows. We invited Pavlo to bring his optimism agenda and his passion and wisdom to discuss the upcoming season. Follow him on Twitter @PavloBrk. Our optimistic party included: News of the Week: New captain, renewal, Kaka dreams, club mentality, rap battle, Milan heart, Inter laughs Mercato: News and rumors Match Reviews: reviews of recent matches Season Preview: Talking players, coach, and forecast Coming up: upcoming matches Thanks again to Pavlo for raining down optimism upon us. Follow him on Twitter to hold him to his rosy predictions @PavloBrk

The long awaited Return of the King, Paolo Maldini, has finally occurred. I have a theory as to why, and it all started with one lucky fan. He won a chance to meet the team, but ended up meeting Gattuso instead. After that, Leonardo was hired on. Then Higuain and Caldara came to Milan. And finally, the return of Maldini. That is a whole lot of luck. That lucky fan is Ricardo, who flew to Los Angeles from Texas just to watch the game. You can follow him on Twitter and Instagram @Ricky7990. Who knows, maybe some of his luck will rub off on you. In the meantime, he and I chatted about: News of the Week: No B team, Montolivo get out, Strinic in, Calhanoglu’s woman problems, Fasssone’s lack of class, Ambrosini’s new challenge, VAR replays, U.S. TV rights ICC U.S. Tour: second half recap Friendlies: reviews of Tottenham and Barcelona matches Milan in Los Angeles: Meeting Gattuso and watching Milan live Mercato: News and rumors The Return of the King: Maldini’s glorious return Coming up: upcoming matches Thanks ag

In spite of all of the changes off the pitch, I had the distinct pleasure of seeing Milan up close and personal here in Los Angeles. From stalking them at the airport to meeting Gattuso to watching them play right before my very eyes, it brought me great joy at a time when there are so many unanswered questions at the club. My favorite intern, Jonathan, also has plans to see the team up close and personal this season, but at the San Siro. We discussed: News of the Week: future legendary coaches, shut up and work, finally Kalinic, don’t let the door hit you on the way out, ciao Capitano, no thank you Puma, train cup, U19 Euros Friendlies: reviews of Novara & Manchester United matches Serie A Calendar: 2018-19 calendar just released UEFA Ruling: CAS overturned UEFA’s ruling Ownership & Management Changes: out with the old, in with the new Coming up: next friendlies Thanks again to Jonathan for being a fantastic intern, a passionate Milan fan, and future San Siro pitch invader.