AC Milan: 11 Things That Must Be Done for Milan to Regain Title from Juventus

The 2011-12 season was a sour return back down to Earth for AC Milan, who were flying high on their Scudetto win from the previous campaign.

It is now up to Massimiliano Allegri to rally his troops as they enter the fray once more, looking to wrestle the trophy away from Juventus, who have emerged as a worldly power again.

Like any battle strategy, there are objectives and checkpoints that need to be fulfilled if a side are to meet their expectations.

With that in mind, here's exactly what AC Milan will need to accomplish in the coming nine months if they are to achieve league glory in 2012-13. 

Forget Off-Field Incidents

Although every nation's league has its odd occurrences, this summer has been a particularly intriguing one for Serie A.

The betting scandal that currently enshrouds areas of the Italian top flight has left some figures—players and managers alike—served with suspensions, fines and more.

Perhaps even more importantly for Milan, the side's squad has changed following the retirements and sales of several key players including Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva, Filippo Inzaghi, Clarence Seedorf and plenty more.

Now, more than ever, the Rossoneri need to find the sense of family that has so often found them in the past and band together, ignoring any and all distractions from outside the club.

If they fail to do so, Massimiliano Allegri's side risk becoming sidetracked with unnecessary burdens and losing the league race before it has even begun.

Transfer Windows

To say that Milan have already had a busy summer transfer window would be a massive understatement.

With Financial Fair Play coming into effect within the next year, football clubs around the world are paying very close attention to their wage bills and expenditures in order to align themselves within their own means.

In fairness to the Rossoneri, the sales of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva will have been difficult to sanction, but it shows vast maturity and concern for the club's future to make such decisions.

In total, 40 players have left the club this summer in any circumstance, whether it be the end of a loan spell, the start of one, retirement or a permanent transfer.

That's a lot to lose.

All this means is that Milan will have a very different squad from last season and need to make use of the transfer windows as much as they ever had.

Giampaolo Pazzini, Riccardo Montolivo and Cristián Zapata are some of the higher-profile names to arrive at the San Siro in replacement, but there will no doubt be more business made by the economically aware Milan giants.

That said, the club need to make sure they get that balance of financial awareness and quality just right. 

Forget European Titles

AC Milan won't win a European title this year.

A hard pill to swallow, I have no doubt, but one nonetheless saturated in truth.

Regardless of their chances, the Rossoneri will certainly give their all across all platforms but in the pursuit of self-preservation, Allegri may want to consider a more conservative approach to how he fields his squads.

With all the departures this summer, Milan are looking threadbare in all areas of the pitch and can't afford to risk losing players to injury.

Even some Europa League will have teams filled with more depth, and while they may not have the same superstar names, their determination and abundant selections would be enough to see off AC Milan in their current state.

No, if they are to take a firm grip on the Serie A title once more, Milan need to put the thought of winning European glory out of their mind and concentrate more on things a little closer to home.

Know Your Limits

Sometimes, in the chase for something beautiful, a team can overstretch themselves, aiming for something that they haven't earned or just aren't ready for.

AC Milan have to accept that this is an incredibly tough time for the club, but even so, they are a strong outfit that undoubtedly have the players and fandom to reclaim the Serie A title.

Pressure is often the undoing of many a team, and Massimiliano Allegri needs to assure his players that even if they come out of this season, that is just fine.

It may be easier said than done but, as is so often said, the Rossoneri need to relax and simply play their game, and the good times will come naturally.

Look to the Young Guns

After several senior members departed the club this summer, AC Milan's aggregate age is looking younger than it has in a long while.

In this season of change, the Italian giants need to look to their academy and attempt to introduce a few youthful faces to the climates of senior football in an attempt to herald in the next generation.

Stephan El Shaarawy and Rodney Strasser are some of the starlets already making their mark on first team matters while Ignazio Abate and Massimo Ambrosini are examples of why investing in younger talent has worked out for the club in the past.

Fitting with their strict financial framework, the academy—where Filippo Inzaghi is now nurturing the young members—should be the biggest source of players that the club are now considering.

Leave the Past Where It Belongs

In kind with the slide itself, I won't dwindle on this point for long.

AC Milan have been blighted by internal rifts in recent times and despite their second place finish last season, the club were constantly linked with supposed struggles from within.

Some reports suggested that Alexandre Pato wasn't being played as much as he should have been due to a rift with Allegri (via FIFA.com), while Antonio Cassano has complained of maltreatment since leaving for Inter (via Goal.com).

Such matters need to be squashed now rather than have them flare up in the near future, needlessly.

Following Inzaghi's retirement, perhaps Pato's new occupying of the No.9 shirt is a sign that things are improving for the Brazilian in particular.

Trust in Allegri

After losing more than a handful of their best players and the Scudetto crown all in the space of a year, masses of season ticket holders at the San Siro were offered a refund for their investment this summer (via Goal.com).

With all this negativity surrounding the club, it's understandable that some may lose a little faith in manager, Massimiliano Allegri, and just what kind of legacy he is looking to leave at the club.

However, it's now that the fans need to have faith that their boss will deliver the goods, just as he did in his first season at the Milan ground.

No manager has an easy job on their hands, but it is made all the more difficult when you don't have the support of your own fandom.

For Allegri, he'll be hoping that the third time is most certainly the charm in his third campaign as the Rossoneri boss.

Away Days

It may sound like an obvious point to make, but AC Milan need to pay particular attention to their form when it comes to playing away from their home ground.

Last season, the Rossoneri won just as many games at the San Siro as they did in unfamiliar territory (12), and if Juventus are going to be anywhere near as dominant as they were last season, dropping points on away ground is dangerous.

For Milan, the home games will eventually take care of themselves, even if their season opener didn't do much to inspire confidence.

Play to Your Strengths

Taking all recent exits into account, AC Milan's defence looks to be the shoddiest part of the squad, as far as depth is concerned.

Losing your top scorer is never easy, but the sale of Thiago Silva to PSG could be just as telling as the one of Zlatan Ibrahimovic to the same club.

What's more, Alessandro Nesta, Gianluca Zambrotta, Massimo Oddo, Gennaro Gattuso and Mark van Bommel's departures will undoubtedly tell as the side will go through a period of lacking leadership.

As such, the attack needs to be the area in which AC Milan concentrate their efforts, especially in helping to welcome Giampaolo Pazzini to his new surroundings.

With less striking options available, this season will be a massive one for Alexandre Pato, and due to his defensive restrictions, it may even be an option for Allegri to play with just three at the back. 

Accept the State of Transition

From their season-opening 1-0 loss to Sampdoria, we can see that this season will be far from an easy one for the Rossoneri.

New faces will have to mould together with older ones in an effort to shape a truly fresh-looking Milan side, but the potential is definitely there for another dynasty of superstars.

Riccardo Montolivo is just one of the new stars for AC Milan, and the sooner the club realise that all might not fall into place straight away, the sooner it actually will.

Beat Juventus

In order to bring the Serie A crown back to the San Siro, AC Milan will need to beat the title's current owners, Juventus.

Not exactly rocket science, eh?

However simple it may appear, so much rests on just two batches of 90 minute matches, it can't emphasised enough.

Just as the meetings between Manchester United and Manchester City are now looked upon with as much importance as the Real Madrid clashes with Barcelona, Juventus vs. AC Milan could well have just as much on the line this season.

With one of the strongest winning mentalities in world football, AC Milan will need to be the ones to end Juventus' happy unbeaten streak if nobody else can do it.

The two outfits meet at the San Siro on 25th November 2012 and again at the Juventus Stadium on 21 April 2013.