Picking an Elite AC Milan 5-a-Side Team from Current Squad
Football is a complex game, but Italian sides have mastered its organisation. Teams from the peninsula are often able to compete with continental rivals in spite of relative financial disadvantages or individual quality gaps due simply to their tactical understanding and awareness.
Now imagine the benefits such rigorous organisation could bring when placed into an environment of smaller scale.
Five-a-side football is played the world over by participants of all levels, both for fun and competition. But if professional teams were entered into a five-a-side tournament, it’s a reasonable bet that the Italians, with their discipline and detail, would challenge for honours.
AC Milan are no longer one of the best footballing outfits to grace Serie A, having finished seventh, 10th and eighth in the last three seasons, respectively. However, they still possess enough talent within their ranks to put together an effective quintet.
Here, we'll take a look at their current squad and assess which players would work best when fielded together in a five-a-side team.
Gianluigi Donnarumma
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Physically, Gianluigi Donnarumma looks older than his 17 years of age, standing at an imposing 6’5”. His tall frame and long arms make him a hard goalkeeper to beat in full-size nets, and the chances of his conceding in smaller goals are even less likely.
This is perhaps what would make him Milan’s standout choice as No. 1 for a five-a-side team, though he also possesses other important characteristics.
In the smaller game, all five players are required to have a certain level of distributive quality. And while his pass accuracy is by no means outstanding, Donnarumma is a composed operator with the ball at his feet and is more than willing to play out from the back.
In addition, the teenager is quick off his line and has exceptional reactions, making him the ideal goalkeeper when it comes to the inordinately swift counter-attacks often seen in five-a-side games.
His main competition for the position would come from Gabriel and Diego Lopez, both of whom are prone to error and neither of whom is particularly adept on the ball.
As a result, the goalkeeping debate is really a no-contest. Donnarumma would unquestionably be the best choice for Milan’s hypothetical five-a-side outfit.
Alessio Romagnoli
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In his article for the Guardian, Nick Ascroft, the author of How to Win at 5-a-Side, stated that one of the most important rules to play the game effectively was as follows: "When you pass, make sure it’s to the feet of your team-mates or into their path if they are already moving. Never just bonk the ball downfield for your team-mate to chase, especially if they were static when you kicked it."
While the tendency within five-a-side is often to focus too much on attacking, having a solid defensive pillar to protect the goalkeeper is valuable. This player can sweep up any failed attacks and ensure the team aren’t caught out on the counter.
However, it’s also important that the defender is capable on the ball. Under pressure with little space and time, good technique, decision-making and accurate passing can be the difference between dispossession and the concession of a goal or the safe progression of play.
Given the requirements of the role, Alessio Romagnoli would be Milan’s finest five-a-side defender.
The 21-year-old is a fine passer; indeed, per Squawka.com’s statistics he was the team’s most efficient defender in this particular aspect last season. He doesn’t panic when receiving the ball under pressure and tends to eschew purposeless long balls, instead opting to find a nearby team-mate or, on rare occasions, take on his marker.
Romagnoli isn’t the most aggressive or physical of defenders, and his aerial ability is worth scrutiny, but these weaknesses wouldn't be quite so problematic in five-a-side football, where direct balls and crosses play less of a part.
Juraj Kucka
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Even the most refined and assured of five-a-side teams has at least one player whose sole purpose is to relentlessly torment the opposition. This player will usually perform a sort of box-to-box role, roving up and down the pitch and getting involved in all phases of the game.
Juraj Kucka was born to play in this role.
The Slovakian is an energetic midfielder whose immense lung power enables him to beat opponents with and without the ball. In possession, his combination of rugged strength and willpower make him difficult to tackle. Out of possession, his stamina enables him to track an opponent from the first whistle to the last.
These qualities made him one of Milan’s unsung heroes last term. Indeed, in the aftermath of the 3-0 win over city rivals Inter Milan, then-coach Sinisa Mihajlovic heaped praise on the 29-year-old, telling Sky Sport Italia (h/t Football Italia), ”It was important to win the one-on-one duels. Kucka in that sense is great because he is like a tank, he’s very hard to challenge and goes into every tackle.”
Kucka’s dynamism makes him virtually immune to direct physical confrontations, and while his passing is far from smooth, his qualities in defensive and attacking transitions would prove extremely valuable in a five-a-side environment.
Giacomo Bonaventura
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Giacomo Bonaventura was Milan’s most consistent player last term. The 27-year-old was utilised in a wide variety of positions within three different systems; he was a central midfielder and a trequartista in a 4-3-1-2 and a winger in a 4-3-3 or 4-4-2.
His flexibility is clear for all to see, but it is his not-so-visible qualities that set him apart from other midfielders.
Bonaventura has an acute awareness of space, both where to find it and how to get there. He is also, despite a skinny 5’11” frame, a deceptively tricky player to dispossess. This is due in the main to his ball control, an understanding of how to position himself in relation to the opposition, nimble footwork and a good passing range.
These qualities were portrayed in his numbers for 2015-16. According to WhoScored.com, he completed more dribbles than any of his team-mates and made more key passes. He was also, perhaps inevitably, the most targeted Milan player, being fouled 2.5 times per game on average.
Bonaventura’s ability to drop into dangerous areas, shield the ball effectively and distribute it productively would be tested by playing on a five-a-side pitch, but his attributes would allow him to adapt quickly.
Carlos Bacca
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Specialism within five-a-side is generally frowned upon. Nobody likes a goal-poacher who spends the entirety of a match lingering just outside the opposition penalty area, refusing to engage in defensive work or buildup play.
At the same time, there is a need for confidence, skill and precision in attacking areas in order to score. Against packed defences in tight spaces with little room to manoeuvre and smaller goals to aim at, the willingness to shoot and the ability to find the net are important traits.
Carlos Bacca is not renowned for his diligence without the ball, nor is he a particularly good passer. His talents lie in finishing moves, not preventing or starting them. But his sheer clinical edge would be enough to nail down a spot atop Milan’s five-a-side formation.
The Colombian has scored 20 goals in Serie A since joining the club and, per Opta Paolo, has achieved that number while attempting just 39 shots. When given the sight of the opposition goalkeeper, his movement, cunning and accuracy make him almost unstoppable.
Five-a-side football may not allow for a great deal of freedom, but that wouldn’t deter Bacca. With him as the primary attacking outlet, goals would be guaranteed.
