AC Milan: What Is the Rossoneri's Best Center-Back Pairing?

Confidence has been cautiously restored in Milan following a morale-boosting 3-1 victory over Lazio on the first matchday of the Serie A season.

The recent international break, perhaps unfortunately, came directly after that victory, forcing Milan fans to wait an extra week before the Rossoneri take on Parma at the Stadio Ennio Tardini this Sunday. 

The merits of Milan's transfer dealings have been endlessly debated, with the sale of Bryan Cristante to Benfica particularly drawing the ire of fans. Allan Jiang of Bleacher Report discussed this last week, and the sale is one that has caused much consternation as to whether Milan is truly operating with any sort of long-term plan.

Regardless of the end result of the late sales of Cristante and Mario Balotelli, some intriguing signings were made.

Fernando Torres, of course, headlines the list of new arrivals at the San Siro. His status as a big-name signing depends greatly on one's perspective, but he could be a useful signing in the admittedly vastly different landscape of Italian football compared to the Premier League in England.

Other late arrivals included Marco van Ginkel and Giacomo Bonaventura, both of whom offer quality in positions Milan may have been lacking in.

Other than these players, there were no defensive arrivals of note following Pablo Armero's mid-August signing.

The defensive line has been a true liability for Milan ever since the departure of Thiago Silva in the summer of 2012. Players like Daniele Bonera, Kevin Constant and Cristian Zaccardo have seen far too much playing time in the past couple seasons.

New coach Filippo Inzaghi took steps to rectify the defensive line by shipping out the aforementioned Constant, along with Urby Emanuelson, Matias Silvestre and Bakaye Traore. 

Adil Rami was retained from Valencia, while Alex also arrived from Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer.

Both players offer solidity and Champions League experience to Milan and understand the pressures of performing at a big club week in and week out.

While Rami was up and down in his half season on loan at Milan last season, he is certainly an upgrade over Philippe Mexes and Bonera as a center-back.

Alex was a starter at PSG as well, but his time in the first XI was rapidly coming to an end following David Luiz's arrival in Paris along with the continued development of former Roma man Marquinhos.

As such, while Mexes has certainly passed his prime as a top-level center-back, Milan are also in possession of another internationally tested center-back in Cristian Zapata.

Zapata starred for Colombia while they made a quarterfinal run in the World Cup in Brazil, and he partnered with Alex to great effect against Lazio.

Rami didn't see the field in that match, and Mexes didn't even make the substitute bench. Regardless, it is fair to assume that both, especially Rami, will play a role this season.

Milan still lack the dominant central midfield to control possession against most teams and will have to rely on the pace of star attackers Stephan El Shaarawy and Jeremy Menez on the counter to start attacks.

Indeed, Milan only enjoyed 44 percent possession against Lazio, who are hardly contenders for a top three-spot in Serie A this year. Better competition will arrive, starting with Juventus' arrival in Milan for a September 20 match. 

Given the counter-attacking approach Inzaghi will favor, it is imperative that Milan have technically gifted center-backs capable of starting attacking forays for the forward players. Zapata, Rami and Alex all fit the bill.

For now, the strongest pairing appears to be Zapata and Alex, as Rami's occasional mental lapses can be costly. 

As the international break passes and club football gets rolling again, the pressure will be on for Milan to sustain their good form from the opening match of the season.

After what was at times an uncertain summer window, Milan fans should feel more secure in the defensive quality present on the team, as Inzaghi now has multiple viable options at center-back.