Milan Obsession

Just when we thought Milan were finally rebuilding, Berlusconi derailed this season with only six games left. With negotiations happening for a potential sale of at least part of the club, the season left us on a giant cliffhanger with very little optimism justified. Still, out of duty or madness or some other reason, a season wrapup seemed the least we could do to maintain some loyalty. Rating the players was also difficult, so I took a high school yearbook approach to make it bearable. For me, humor is the only thing we have left, at least until the big questions are answered. Milan fans everywhere are praying for something to finally change, so I also went to The Other Pope for guidance, Francesco. Follow him for divine Milan tweets @FrancecoPetra8. For this epic hour long podcast, we chatted about: News of the Month: Maldini honor, online petitions, back to court, tackle stat, new dads, new kit, ciao Abbiati, birthday, team of the season, Rami trophy, new player, Conte crimes, BREAKING NEWS Club News:

Everyone was stunned when Mihajlovic was sacked and replaced with the promoted Brocchi with only six games and a Coppa final left. After seemingly finally doing some of the right things to actually rebuild after almost four years, this took us spiraling straight down to that horrible limbo between the champions of yesteryear and the success of the future. So while we wait to see what becomes of our beloved club, all we can do is talk about what can be done to make Milan great again. For such an important discussion, I needed a truly passionate fan, so I asked Steve, aka the Bonaventura of Milan fans. Steve didn’t let his fame from @RedCardWeekly go to his head, instead he founded a fantastic company called vintagepitch.com with amazing football t-shirts, which you can follow on Twitter @VintagePitch. And as if that wasn’t enough, he is involved in the relaunch of the Milan Club Montreal, or @ACMClubMTL on Twitter. We chatted about: News of the Week: Niang update, Drones, Sexism, VAR technology, Panama Paper

Milan fans everywhere seem to be not only deflated, but writing off this season like the past three. However an unpopular opinion is that there has actually been quite a bit of progress and growth this season. As that is my unpopular opinion, for this conversation, we explore whether or not that is true and why and how. So listen and feel free to let me know if you agree that this year could finally be year zero in a Milan comeback.   This discussion required the ultimate guest, Francesco. He is a second generation Milan fan, born in Milano, and now spreading the gospel of the red and black in Argentina. Follow him on Twitter @FrancescoPetra8. In the face of technical difficulties, we discussed: News of the Week: Borgonovo tribute, Conte exit, ICC tournament, Varese friendly, almost a Berlusconi confirmation, and Water Bottlegate 2016 Season Update: summary of recent match International Update: summary of Milan players’ contributions for their national teams Is Milan Better than Last Year?: how Mil

Reflecting on the Silvio years after the recent 30 year anniversary of Berlusconi buying the club, it’s important to look at all of those 30 years. Through triumphs and tragedies and trophies, how will he be remembered? As Silvio the man? Silvio the businessman? Silvio the politician? Or Silvio the owner and President of Milan? Or maybe a combination of all of those? As fans I suppose we can pick and choose, especially those of us outside of Italy. But the anniversary was worth catching up on all things Milan and having that discussion. Following a lunchtime match at Chievo, I needed someone who was willing to stay awake so early in the morning here in North America, and that person was my good friend Vinny of Red Card Weekly fame. Like the best of celebrities, Vinny is only very occasionally on Twitter, but you can follow him @RedCardWeekly. For our early morning chat, we discussed: News of the Week: Where’s Sheva?, We have a Curva?, Niang’s bad luck, shut up Inter, Berlusconi vs. Mihajlovic, new FIFA pres

When this podcast began three years ago as a personal challenge, I never dreamed that I would still be spending an ungodly number of hours editing these things in 2016. However, it has been so much fun to have different fans on discussing Milan, I can’t imagine life without it. All 70 of them, specifically. It has been a fun way to interact with fans on top of the blog and Twitter. So for that, along with the signs of improvement with the team and a couple of other milestones coming up later this week, it seems like it’s time to celebrate  A milestone like this required going back to the roots of Milan Obsession, when my dear friend Jovan and I co-founded the blog. Now he is the genius mastermind of a suite of fantasy football sites, including fantasyseriea.com. While catching up on all things Milan, we talked about: News of the Week: De Jong’s farewell, all things Kucka, Donnarumma the kid, Luiz Adriano hair update, Water Bottlegate 2016 Season Update: summary of the recent matches Mercato Update: tr

Nothing could follow the most deliciously epic Derby win on Sunday, but I had to try. I stopped my laughter and screaming and wiped away my tears of joy and set out to talk about all things Milan with a massive smile on my face. The Derby win was a moment of healing and a reprieve from all that fans have endured in the past few years, as well as a gigantic slap in the face to our most hated rivals, something fans could only dream of before today. But after the celebrations are over, there are other games to be played, and so much to look forward to. An epic win required an epic guest, and luckily @RedCardWeekly’s Steve was available. Which is impressive given his newest venture, vintagepitch.com, where you can order some killer new vintage themed Serie A t-shirts. You can keep up on the new designs and releases by following @VintagePitch. Despite our exquisite joy following that delicious win, we were able to discuss: News of the Week: Primavera success, Ely surgery, set piece woes, epic retirement, goal li

It’s so hard to keep one’s head on straight with all that has happened at Milan. We lose or draw to a relegation side, and it’s easy to go to that dark place where we have spent so much time in these past few years. We win a game, and it’s easy to start building expectations too high again because we want to return to glory so badly. And that’s just the fans. But if you look carefully, the team at least seem to be gradually improving their mentality. However there are clouds on the horizon, with changes possible in the mercato and elsewhere. With a very fragile new mentality following a big win, it’s best to explore all things Milan with a grain of salt.   Because this is a fan podcast, I am always looking for passionate Milan fans all over the world. This time, I found Joe, from the East coast of the United States. Recording after the Fiorentina win, we talked about:   News of the Week: Injury, speaking out, warnings, making chances, strong Serie A, Platini fail, Barbara’s wisdom Season Update: summary

It may be a new year, but we are nearly mid season and it seems that we are destined to remain stuck in the middle… in the middle of the table, in the middle of a neverending rebuilding, and in the middle of a crisis for fans. We are continually asking ourselves why we continue to support this club. But for many of us, there are a lot of signs of life with some of our players, and that is worth talking about. So near the midseason mark, it seemed appropriate to talk about our midseason player ratings instead of our usual search for justification of our devotion to this club. With a new year, I needed a new guest. So I invited long-time Milan Obsession reader Nathan. Follow him on Twitter for all of his Milan opinions @NathanTManuel. You can also read his guest post from a while back. For this special epic movie and holiday edition, we talked about: News of the Week: Going home, marriage, family, team of the year, and schadenfreude Season Update: where we are in the standings Mercato Update: transfer n

There is a disturbance in the force. Can you feel it? No? Not surprising, as Milan are still struggling to discover who they are. But there are questions as to whether or not we will see an awakening in 2016. I’ve been using Star Wars as an analogy (but without any spoilers!) because it resonates with our struggles as fans, and of course because the new movie is freaking awesome. So for the last podcast of the year, there are two important messages to take: Merry Christmas and May the Force Be With You. Well, okay, there’s a little more to talk about… just listen already. For such an epic podcast, I needed an epic guest, so of course I asked Francesco. He is my appointed President of the Curva Sud America, currently residing in Argentina. He is also an important member of The Resistance, so be sure to follow him on Twitter @FrancescoPetra8. For this special epic movie and holiday edition, we chose to chat about: News of the Week: Twitter fail, Youth Sector win, ironic disappointment, nepotism doesn’t pay, t

With so many token moves from the club at the beginning of this calendar year and so many claims of moving forward, fans have subjected themselves to poor performances galore hoping to see some progress. But as one by one, things have fallen through: the deal with Mr. Bee, the stadium, and Berlusconi’s random opening of the wallet, it has become obvious that progress is not in the plans. But with the announcement that Boateng is likely to sign in January and the reports that Montolivo is set to sign a three year extension, not only are we no longer going forward, we are actually regressing.  The victim of all of this bad news in one podcast was Pete, of pdacquaviva.com fame. If you miss his regular brilliance there, then you should follow him on Twitter at @pdacquaviva. We commiserated about: News of the Week: regressing Season Update: Milan’s regression What the Hell, Milan? regression Mihajlovic Trolling: LOL Coming Up: try to avoid the upcoming matches If you are not following Pete on Twitte

After an extended injury break, the podcast is finally back. Hopefully, Milan get the memo and step up and give us some more good things to talk about. Until that point, like a baby deer learning to stand and then walk, Milan will most likely still be finding our footing. That process allows for successes and failures, but does not demand the consistency that most of us fans are craving. But even with a run of three consecutive wins, consistency is still very much lacking in this season. Whether it be mentality or injuries or just missing pieces still, Milan are definitely still looking to find their footing. To bring us back online with the podcasts, it had to be David as my guest. He is the mastermind behind acmilanfinance.com and you can always find his words of wisdom on Twitter if you follow @DavidLSwan. This time we chatted about:   News of the Week: Oops, Tavecchio did it again, generous Mihajlovic, Ibra spurns Milan, Call of Duty: Black Ops III, Bonera’s wisdom, Mexes’ surprise Season Update: Mil

Recorded immediately after the disappointing and yet strangely encouraging Derby loss, this podcast was like therapy for Milan fans. Despite losing, there are still encouraging signs within the team. And yet there are bad signs financially while things look to be improving on the pitch. There have been a lot of rumors and criticism of Mihajlovic’, and yet it seems like there is a lot of solidarity and support for him, too. So above all else, it’s a good time to ask yourself: Are you on Team Mihajlovic? Post Derby, I had to have the co-founder and former co-blogger of Milan Obsession on, the legendary Jovan. Check out fantasyseriea.com to see the amazing fantasy football game he’s created, just one of four fantasy games for four of the major leagues in Europe. In our post-Derby depression, we meandered about:   • News of the Week: Mister Nesta, new opening, Q&A for kids, wage bill worries, Curva Sud, Balotelli’s greatest crime • Match Roundups: Mantova-Milan friendly, Inter-Milan Derby • Mercato: updates o

After a very encouraging summer, Milan are haunted again by ghosts of the past. Curva Sud protesting, a terrible third kit, more mediocre Genoa players and free transfers, and reverting to poor performances are just a few things haunting the club now. With the mercato closing and an International break underway, it gives us a little time to reflect on where Milan is and place more realistic expectations on the season. For this podcast, only one guest would do, and that guest is David Swan. You can find out why by following him on Twitter @DavidLSwan and checking out his fantastic acmilanfinance.com site with all things having to do with Milan finances conveniently translated into English for us. In this epic conversation, we talked about: • News of the Week: Milan baby, Argentinian barbecue, hideous third kit, free kick dreams, Curva Sud flexing their power  • Mercato: updates on what has happened in the transfer market  • Match Roundups: Coppa Italia, Fiorentina-Milan, and Milan-Empoli • International Break:

For three years now, we as fans were promised that it was Year Zero, that Milan was rebuilding, and that success was in the near future. Only it was never true, and “Year Zero” became like a curse word. But this year, it finally feels like it really is Year Zero, the one we were originally promised. And instead of making us curse, it feels like a party. For the Serie A season preview, I needed some serious star power, so I used my connections to secure the amazing Steve from Red Card Weekly. You can follow him on Twitter @RedCardWeekly, and since he is humble despite his fame, you may even be able to interact with him there. • News of the Week: heartbreaking injury, the unbelievable Mr. Bee, Roma fan douchebaggery • Mercato: updates on what has happened in the transfer market • Serie A News: new card accumulation rule change, Serie A anthem • Friendlies: Audi Cup and Trofeo TIM             • Season Predictions: our picks for Milan and the best and worst in the league  • Coming Up: mark your calendar for the u

For the past couple of seasons, success has seemed less plausible than someone holding onto the outside of a plane taking off. But that didn’t stop management from claiming that we were contending for the Scudetto or a Champions League spot. However, this summer, they acquired a smart coach, kicked out some players who were at least two years past their expiration date, and brought in players with quality who have a nice combination of youth and experience. And looking at how things are coming together so far, despite being premature, for the first time in a few years, reaching a top three spot finally seems like Mission Possible. A new season, a new coach, and new players calls for a new guest. So in searching the globe for a world class guest, I ended up in Norway and found Kristian. He has contributed to the comments section of the blog and is a great fan with a very strong knowledge of both football and Milan. This time we talked about: • News of the Week: Primavera tournament, new sponsor, Muntari making

With so many mercato changes in place and four friendlies under our belts, the bizarre concept of optimism is beginning settle in amongst Milan fans. How long has it been since we could truly be optimistic about an upcoming season? And have some foundation for said optimism? While trying not to drown ourselves in the Kool-Aid, there certainly are a lot of signs that things are starting to look up. It’s hard not to have great expectations for the upcoming season.   For this conversation, I invited Milan Obsession’s favorite longstanding guest, Francesco. You can follow him on Twitter @FrancescoPetra8 or check out the comments section on the blog, where he is our no. 10 and captain. We talked about: • News of the Week: Serie A schedule, team dinner, Pazzini bitches, Darmian facepalm, players left behind, Coppa Italia • International News: Tavecchio and Conte love affair, big changes at FIFA, World Cup draw, soulless Suarez • Friendlies: Milan 5, Alcione 1; Milan 5, Legnano 1; Lyon 2, Milan 1; and Milan 1, Inter

 There is always some level of hope as a fan, but for Milan fans, all hope was nearly beaten out of us this past three years. However what has transpired so far this summer took everyone by surprise. In fact events of the last ten days make it seem like some kind of Bizarro World, and I haven’t heard any fans complaining about the change of location. With Milan doing basically the opposite of what they have done the past several years, it is refreshing to see the changes on paper, even if we haven’t seen anything to speak of on the pitch just yet. And I know I for one am loving the change of scenery. On my tour of Bizarro World, I invited a favorite recurring guest, Pete. If you follow him on Twitter @PDAcquaviva, you can catch great comments, wit, and news of his podcasts. And possibly even news of some future blogposts from his fantastic pdacquaviva.com. We talked about: • News of the Week: Ritiro, What happened here?, Lotito’s excuse, Tassotti renews, Stadium news, #RetireBonera25 • Press Conference with M

1986 was an important year for Milan’s history. It was the year that Silvio Berlusconi bought the club, beginning the years of big spending and no accountability. It was also the beginning of Sinisa Mihajlovic’ senior playing career. And it’s the year that seems to keep on giving, as Galliani seems stuck in the year 1986 as far as his transfer dealings, and now we have Mihajlovic, former Roma, Sampdoria, Lazio, and Inter player as the coach who is supposed to pull us out of a slump that is actually worse than where we were in 1986. So there’s nothing to celebrate, but for this podcast, we’re going to party like it’s 1986. I invited Jovan to this party, my former Milan Obsession co-blogger and the genius behind fantasyseriea.com and his other fantasy football sites. We talked about: • News of the Week: Serie A promotions, Mastour’s choice, Menez’ surgery, Abate’s wedding, Lyon friendly, Milan’s ticket campaign • Mercato: deals that are done  • Galliani: living in 1986  • New Coach: looking at Mihajlovic 

It was difficult to find much to laugh about this past season, but there were plenty of tears. Tears and pain and frustration and drinking… lots of drinking. But if you’re listening to this podcast, you probably survived, one way or the other. So trying to add a little laughter, but unwittingly causing tears, we got together to try to make some sense of what just happened this year. For this conversation, I needed a couple of people who have bled red and black with me throughout Milan’s demise. From Argentina, we were joined by Francesco, aka the President of the Curva Sud America. He can be followed on Twitter @FrancescoPetra8. Joining us from Florida was Derwuin, of @ToePokePod fame. You can follow him @D_Mendez3, if you dare. We discussed: • News of the Week: NT callups, Ancelotti declines, Essien out, Zapata speaks out, Cerci robbed of his manhood and more, Abate to tie the knot, Blatter steps down • Champions League Final: looking from the outside in • Bee Taechaubol: update on the agreement to purchase

Finally the torture is over. I’ve never been so relieved for Serie A to end. Between the poor performances, worse results, Curva’s lame boycotts, and Galliani being in denial and bringing in players by the dozens, this season couldn’t end soon enough. But what’s next? Based on the things we know and the things we’ve heard and the great unknown, we talked about the state of Milan, with the focus being on management. For an epic discussion, I needed epic guests. So joining me this time was Pete of pdacquaviva.com. You can follow him on Twitter @PDAcquaviva. Also joining me was David of acmilanfinance.com. You can follow him on Twitter @DavidLSwan. We discussed: • News of the Week: Audi Cup, cryogenic chambers, Rami meltdown, FIFA meltdown, Paletta, @Milanello returns • Season to Date: our final results from Serie A • The State of Milan: Berlusconi, Galliani, Inzaghi, Ancelotti, the Squad, Barbara Berlusconi Thanks again to David and Pete for some epic Milan conversation Be sure to follow them on Twitter @DavidL