AC Milan made the decision to continue with their strategy of trying to build a young core for the future with their summer business.
That is according to this morning’s edition of Corriere dello Sport (via PianetaMilan) which states in no uncertain terms that this ‘young’ Milan side are aiming for the Scudetto, which would mean getting to number 20 and a second star before Simone Inzaghi’s Inter.
The Nerazzurri will be the Rossoneri’s next opponent in the league and we will learn a lot about the title race next Saturday 16 September in the first Derby della Madonnina of the new season.
The objective of Inter and Milan is identical but, at its core, there is a very different squad construction philosophy. Among the big clubs in Serie A, the red half of the city boast the lowest average age (25.7 years) while their rivals have the highest (28.2).
Specifically since Stefano Pioli has been there as head coach, Milan have deployed a very precise mercato strategy built around signing talented young players to adapt in Italy and grow into a future core.
During the Scudetto-winning season in 2021-22 Milan have five players over 30: Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Olivier Giroud, Ciprian Tătărușanu, Alessandro Florenzi and Junior Messias.
Of Milan’s ten signings, only Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Marco Sportiello are over 25 years old. The average age then dropped further thanks to the departure of Ibrahimović, Tătărușanu, Messias, plus Ante Rebić and Divock Origi.
In the 1987-88 season, Arrigo Sacchi’s first Milan side went on to win the Scudetto with a very young team (23.3 years old on average). The ‘old men’ were the almost thirty-year-olds Franco Baresi, Carlo Ancelotti and Mauro Tassotti.
