How AC Milan Can Build for 2016-17 as Current Season Draws to a Close

This season has been one of transition for AC Milan. After two consecutive years of underperformance in Serie A, coach Sinisa Mihajlovic was brought in and tasked with guiding the club back towards the top of the league. However, this is yet to happen.

In his debut campaign, the Serbian has led the team to sixth in the table. It’s a respectable position, an improvement on the past two years, and it would see the club compete in Europe again in 2016-17. There is also the matter of a Coppa Italia final, in which the Rossoneri will play Juventus.

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As positive as all of the above is, this season has also had drawbacks. The results haven’t been as good as initially hoped, with UEFA Champions League qualification highly unlikely. Meanwhile, the style of football has been dull and Mihajlovic’s tactical vision incoherent.

This campaign has seen progress, only on a gradual basis. If Milan are to re-assert themselves as one of Italy’s finest clubs, the 2016-17 season will be crucial.

So, how can the club begin to build for next season as this one comes to a close?

1. Establish who will be coach in 2016-17

Few things can destabilise a football team’s performance more than uncertainty regarding who will be the coach going forward. Yet this has been the case for almost the entirety of this term at Milan.

Mihajlovic has never had the full backing of his current employers, with honorary president Silvio Berlusconi constantly undermining him in public. Even with seven vital league fixtures and a cup final remaining—games that could decide whether the Rossoneri return to European football—doubt remains over who will be in charge come 2016-17.

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“Mihajlovic? Let’s see how the season ends, then we’ll decide what to do,” Berlusconi remarked recently while speaking to Radio Radio (h/t Football Italia). “Right now I can’t say anything, though, we still have to decide our future. We’re in a transitional phase.”

Since those comments, there have been additional reports suggesting that Milan’s coach could go before the end of this season, with La Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t Football Italia) stating that he may be fired should his team lose heavily to Juventus this Saturday.

Such open lack of clarity regarding Mihajlovic’s future is unhelpful not just in terms of ensuring short-term stability at a time when good results are needed with immediacy to break the team’s four-game winless run. It’s also unhelpful when planning for the future.

Were the former Sampdoria boss to depart the club, he would be the fourth coach to leave Milan inside three years. It’s a potentially shambolic state of affairs that, dependent on who his replacement would be, could seriously harm the Rossoneri’s chances of progress.

2. Make decisions on fringe players

As hard as it may be, given the aforementioned speculation concerning his future, Mihajlovic must continue to think with the future in mind.

A top-six Serie A finish and a Coppa Italia win are still well within his reach and, should he achieve one or both of them, Milan would also return to continental competition in 2016-17.

With his existing contract lasting until 2017, Mihajlovic could be the man to lead the club back into Europe. If that is the case, he will need to formulate a plan as to what he wants his squad to look like next season.

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That means deciding whether fringe players such as Mattia De Sciglio, Andrea Poli, Jeremy Menez and Luiz Adriano, as well as those whose contracts are up this summer, per Transfermarkt.co.uk, including Alex, Cristian Zapata, Riccardo Montolivo and Mario Balotelli, are to stay or go.

3. Plan ahead for the summer transfer window

Once it is clearer regarding who in the current squad will still be with the club in 2016-17, it will be easier for Milan to plan ahead for potential signings to be made when this summer’s transfer window opens.

There are some areas, such as central defence, where additions are necessary regardless of who stays and goes. Apart from Alessio Romagnoli, the Rossoneri’s options in this area are either past their best, as is the case with 33-year-old Alex and 34-year-old Philippe Mexes or—in the cases of Zapata and Rodrigo Ely—not quite good enough.

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River Plate’s Emanuel Mammana has been linked to the club. Though, according to La Repubblica (h/t Football Italia), the Argentinian is also on Napoli’s radar.

Last summer, Milan were unsuccessful in attempts to sign Geoffrey Kondogbia, with the midfield ball-winner eventually deciding to join city rivals Inter Milan instead. Planning in advance could help to prevent such situations from arising when assembling the squad for next season.

This campaign can still be a positive start to a new era for the Rossoneri. And if they can establish who out of the coaching and playing staff will remain, while also moving quickly to secure important transfer targets, they can enter 2016-17 ready to push on further.