How Big a Steal Is Luca Antonelli for AC Milan?

This past winter AC Milan were looking with increasing desperation to improve their defensive line.  Alex was injured, Philippe Mexes was suspended and Daniele Bonera was just awful.

The replacements weren't exactly top drawer.  Salvatore Bocchetti was a spare part on loan for Spartak Moscow.  Gabriel Paletta was probably the best center back in the league in 2013-14 but was still finding his feet after an injury had robbed him of the majority of the first half of the season.  He was targeted because he was cheap getting at the sinking ship that was Parma.

Bocchetti showed his flaws at Milan, and his loan wasn't made permanent.  Paletta played well, but recent acquisitions have imperiled his place in the team.  Given Milan's lack of European competition, they probably have more center backs than they need, and Corriere dello Sport (h/t Football Italia) has linked him to Atalanta as well as newly promoted Bologna.

The one man who has stuck out of the trio Milan signed is Luca Antonelli.  The full-back plugged a major hole on Milan's left flank and in only half a season turned into one of their best players.

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Antonelli started his footballing life in the youth academy of his hometown club of Monza—the same place Milan goalkeeper and vice-captain Christian Abbiati got his start.  A year later, he moved to Milan's academy.  He made his Milan debut in the Coppa Italia in November of 2006 and his Serie A debut a month later.

In 2007 the youngster was sent to Serie B side Bari for seasoning.  He was so impressive in the second division that Parma took notice and secured his services on loan for the rest of the season.  The next year, he played for the Crusaders on a co-ownership deal.  The year after that, Parma bought the rest of his rights, and he played at the Tardini for the next two years.

Genoa picked him up in 2011 and quickly displaced Domenico Criscito as the team's left-back.  Criscito was soon gone, joining Luciano Spalletti at Zenit St. Petersburg.

Antonelli manned the flank for the Grifone through some lean years.  The team came a hair's breadth from relegation twice.  A game was imperiled in 2012 when disgusted fans threatened to invade the pitch, calling the players unworthy of the team's colors and demanding they hand over their shirts.

During his time away from Milan, Antonelli put up some impressive statistics. According to WhoScored.com, he's averaged as many as four tackles per match (in 2012-13) and 2.7 interceptions ('11-12).  His play attracted the attention of Cesare Prandelli, who gave him the first of his nine international caps in a Euro 2012 qualifier against Estonia on September 3, 2010.  It also caught the eye of his old employers.

With Ignazio Abate out injured, the team needed someone who could play on the left.  That would allow for Bonera to be dropped and players like Mattia De Sciglio to man the right.  Antonelli provided that flexibility and much more—all for a €4 million fee.

In 12 games with Milan, he averaged 2.6 in both the tackle and interception categories—both increases over his numbers in the first half of the season with Genoa.  The sole drop-off in his game was a sharp spike in his average fouls per game—likely the product of his colleagues spending so much time in disadvantageous positions.

His performance was good enough for WhoScored to rank him Milan's second-best player last year.  Sports journalist Anthony Lopopolo ranked him seventh, crediting him with bringing "some much-needed stability to a tortured position."

Antonelli is not a flashy player, but not all 11 guys on the field are going to be flair players.  Steady hands are just as important as the players who make the crowd ooh and ahh—and Antonelli is the picture of steady.  At only €4 million, Milan have a player who can lock down the left flank for years.

It's a great value signing—and a fantastic, low-profile steal on the market.