AC Milan vs. Siena: 6 Things We Learned

AC Milan secured a vital 2-1 victory in the first weekend of Serie A since the Christmas break.

Goals from Bojan Krkic and Giampaolo Pazzini were enough to see off a resilient Siena side and gain ground on Juventus, Inter and Roma at the top of the league.

The Rossoneri have already lost Alexandre Pato, who signed for Corinthians earlier this week, so the side is hardly stronger than their calamitous first half of the season, and with little sign of big-money signings arriving later this month, Milan could struggle to rise up and claim a top-three place.

This was a vital victory, though, and it taught us a lot about the coming months for this team.

Let me know your thoughts on Milan and their prospects of claiming a Champions League place for next season in the comments section below.

Bojan Krkic Can Contribute to the Rossoneri's Charge for a Top-3 Place

Bojan Krkic has endured a mixed season for Milan, but it appears as if there is a bright future for this sensational young player yet.

After some outstanding cameos for Barcelona, the Spaniard struggled to shine for Roma last year, so it seemed as if Milan represented a last chance at a club of the Rossoneri's stature.

Despite not being a prolific goalscorer, Bojan possesses outstanding technical ability that can help Milan unlock Serie A's notoriously tight defences, especially in Massimiliano Allegri's 4-3-3 formation, due to his versatility to fit into any of the front three positions.

Bojan's movement is very clever, and with Italian defenders often dropping deep, this can be a valuable asset when space is particularly tough to find in and around the penalty area.

He produced a darting run toward the near post to break the deadlock with a snap header into the bottom corner and gave a lively performance from the bench in general.

Now the challenge in the new year is for Bojan to claim a regular starting place for the side.

Christian Abbiati Is Very Strong Mentally

Christian Abbiati was drafted back into the starting lineup for Milan against Siena this weekend.

The Italian goalkeeper began the season as the No. 1, but some impressive displays from Marco Amelia led Massimiliano Allegri to drop Abbiati to the bench toward the end of the first half of the season.

Since then, though, Abbiati has forced his way back into the side and was given the task to establish his place against Siena.

This was not an ideal fixture to impress the manager given that Milan would largely dominate proceedings and force Abbiati to be diligent when the visitors eventually attacked.

Alessandro Rosina darted in from the left and sent a fierce shot toward the top left corner that Abbiati tipped around the post.

In a game where there was not a great deal of action, Abbiati certainly showed some reliability between the sticks.

Mattia De Sciglio Survived at Centre-Back

Mattia De Sciglio was forced into playing centre-back for the first time in his professional career against Siena.

Daniele Bonera, Cristian Zapata and Mario Yepes were all injured, while Philippe Mexes was suspended, leaving Francesco Acerbi as the only centre-back in the squad available.

De Sciglio filled in competently and tended to drop deeper than Acerbi, who assumed the role as the ball winner by attacking the long passes from Siena.

The young defender displayed composure on the ball and distributed the ball excellently from deep areas.

Cover Is Needed at Centre-Midfield Too

With the news that Nigel de Jong is ruled out for the remainder of the season due to an Achilles injury, Milan are left with a dilemma at centre-midfield.

Massimo Ambrosini is in the twilight of his career and can only be called upon to produce performances of any substance once per week at the very most.

So when the Coppa Italia and Champions League return, Milan will need backup in this area.

It is unknown at this stage whether Sulley Muntari can provide enough assurance in this role after a long time out with injury, so a loan move for a midfield enforcer is something of a priority for the Rossoneri this month.

Milan Are Still Vulnerable at Crosses

Milan's problem for the majority of the season has been their inability to defend crosses.

It was frankly embarrassing how easily Roma were able to succeed in aerial challenges against Philippe Mexes and Mario Yepes as the Giallorossi sauntered into a four-goal lead.

Despite securing a vital win Sunday, there were signs that the defence is still not organised enough to be able to keep the goals out of the other end in their pursuit of a top-three place.

Mattia De Sciglio, who is not a centre-back by trade, partnered Francesco Acerbi at the back against Siena.

The pair of them were unable to organise who was marking who, and Acerbi was ball watching in the buildup to the Michele Paolucci goal for Siena, allowing the 26-year-old to gain a run on De Sciglio and plant his header past a helpless Christian Abbiati.

Massimiliano Allegri simply must buy a new centre-back in January in order to provide a solid base to gain some consistency moving forward.

3rd Place Is Now a Realistic Goal for the Rossoneri

Milan are in transition, so the ambition of the club is not as high as it once was, even if the club will not openly admit it.

So a successful season would certainly be a top-three finish and reclaiming their place in the Champions League again next season.

Milan are seven points away from Napoli, who occupy that valuable third place, while three other teams are sandwiched between them and their goal, Roma, Fiorentina and Inter.

The competition is stiffer than ever, but considering that Lazio are a further two points ahead in second place, Milan can feel relatively optimistic in the knowledge that the squad, even in transition, has a lot more quality than the Biancocelesti.