Why AC Milan Must Finish in 3rd in Serie A This Season

Pippo Inzaghi likes to remind people that AC Milan finished eighth last season. He first brought it up in the pre-season press conferences, as if weighing the task ahead of him, and he brought it up again after Milan drew 1-1 with Cesena on Sunday.

It was the second straight game within a week against a newly promoted side, and for a second straight time they tied.

Milan did look like a team making progress, but they have dropped points in their last three games. The goal is pretty simple for Inzaghi: to finish higher than eighth. But that is not good enough—not for a club like Milan. The benchmark has to be third place. Reaching it is an entirely different proposition.

“People seemed to think away games at Empoli and Cesena would be easy," Inzaghi told Sky Sport Italia on Sunday (h/t Football Italia), "but it is never simple against the newly promoted sides in Serie A."

But Milan never took true control of either match. They conceded first in both of those games, and they did not have any real identity. To open the season, Milan played some adventurous football—but now it is tiring. Against Empoli and then Cesena, Milan lacked any real ideas. They started to kick and run.

Cristian Zapata became the second defender in this young season to get a red card with Milan. That itself is inexcusable.

But Inzaghi says he does see positive signs. "As a Coach I need to look at improving the team game by game and I feel we are doing that, " he said (via Football Italia). "We have a good team spirit and maybe those who watch us risk a heart attack, but at least they are entertained! That’s what we wanted to bring back to Milan."

Milan certainly are entertaining, but to their own detriment. They have scored the joint-most goals in Serie A (as of Sunday), but they have also allowed the second-most strikes. There is no balance to this team, and a squad without balance is risky. Milan don't have time to clean up any more of their own messes.

Milan need a plan, and they need it now. They cannot afford to waste any more points against sides they should beat—away or at home. The games against Juventus and Roma are not really the important ones; it's the ones against the likes of Cesena that really matter.

Milan earned €51.4 million from the 2012-13 Champions League, per Bloomberg. This is money they are now losing. Selling players like Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic is actually costing them money.

So Inzaghi must ready this team for a serious top-three challenge. He does deserve more time to get his team in order, but Clarence Seedorf barely got half a season. Milan simply have little time. They have to get back among the big clubs; the Europa League is not enough. It is not an easy task, and they may not complete it—not with a squad with several defensive shortcomings—but anything less is a failure.