Milan Obsession

Just when you thought things couldn’t get any worse at Milan, we lost to Udinese with a performance that would make Mary Poppins depressed. With rumors of a full-blown meltdown and Inzaghi ordering the team into ritiro until our Genoa match, there hasn’t been much to smile about this week. But maybe that is something we need to start to wrap our heads around. Even if the rumors of Berlusconi selling a majority share of the club come true, it will take more than money tor rebuild this Milan. We need to start being realistic about the future of Milan. This time I was joined by my Milan Obsession co-founder Jovan. After his brief foray into blogging, he went on to have lots more fun by creating and developing fantasyseriea.com and three other Fantasy Football sites. But he still has time for his lifelong club Milan, as evidenced in our conversation: • News of the Week: Meet the Mayor, Primavera success, Slumber Party at Milanello, massive losses for 2014 • Season to Date: our results from Serie A  • The Current

A Derby win, or even a great performance, would have been such a gift to the fans who have suffered so much this season. But it was not to be. Instead, we got more of the same timid and inconsistent play we’ve seen all season. So disappointing. But if I’ve learned one thing this season, it’s to grasp onto any tiny amount of good, because there’s not going to be a lot more of it any time soon. With back to back wins, and a decent draw going into the derby, it was a letdown on so many levels. Somehow having the emotional strength to record right after the Derby was our President of the Curva Sud America, Francesco, also known as p3trarch on the blog. Born in Milano and a lifelong Milanista, he truly knows what the Derby means. You can follow him on Twitter @FrancescoPetra8. Our post-Derby conversation included: • News of the Week: the Berlucopter returns, van Ginkel unveiled, Primavera win a trophy in Dubai, guess who’s back?  • Season to Date: our results from Serie A  • The Derby: commiserating the draw • To

Usually it seems like there isn’t as much going on during international breaks for Milan fans. But despite having fewer players called up than we have in a long time, there is actually a lot to talk about. And it’s not just Milan’s performances or even the players who were called up by their national teams. The Curva Sud are still demanding answers and there are changes being made in Serie A, too. And yet it still kind of feels like instead of a just an International break, things everywhere in Italy are just simply broken.  I was lucky enough to be joined once again by David, a rare Milan fan in England who actually has Milan season tickets and catches as many games as he can. You can follow him on Twitter @DavidLSwan (the L is for Legend) and also check out his site, acmilanfinance.com which is a fantastic reference for the business side of Milan all translated for you into English. For this episode, we chatted about: • News of the Week: Menexes, Cesare Maldini speaks, 7th place, epic Twitter announce • Sea

Since nothing is really happening on the pitch, there isn’t a lot of football to talk about. Especially without midweek games in Europe. And there isn’t much to talk about off the pitch, either. Milan is barely treading water, and as fans, it can be hard to find anything worth talking about that hasn’t already been said. But that didn’t stop us from trying. So anyway… Joining me once again from sunny South Florida was our very own Derwuin. You can follow him on Twitter @D_Mendez3 for his take on football and more. Also follow @ToePokePOD for updates on his podcast on Serie A that he and his Juventus frenemy will be starting up again soon. This time around, we talked about:   • News of the Week: Destro, Maldini, Europa League, #SaveParmaTakeInterInstead, Berlusconi, Cerci, @Milanello • Season to Date: our results from Serie A • Injury Crisis: can we fix it? • How do you solve a problem like Menez?: how he really stacks up  • Help Inzaghi: a little advice on formations, starters, subs, and more  • Coming Up: Up

After waking up at an ungodly hour to watch the Empoli game, my spirits were nearly at an all time low having watched such a terrible performance. The weight of years of douchebaggery just came crashing down on me with the injuries, suspensions and poor play from that match just the punctuation mark. The only plausible comparison I could conjure for where Milan is headed was a train wreck. But I’m not jumping off of this train anytime soon. It may hurt, and we may see the inevitable doom, but it’s still my Milan and I’m going to see it through. My fellow sleep deprived Milanista this time was Pete. You will remember him from other great podcasts as well as his DAI DAI DAI blog. Or you may know him from his wise and witty comments on Twitter. Despite both being tired and despondent about Milan, we had some excellent and enlightening conversation: • News of the Week: Galliani douchebaggery, Berlusconi xenophobia, Mastour’s surgery, Paletta’s hair • Season to Date: results from Serie A • Squad Analysis: how bad

Three points and a pre-Galliani Day™ shopping spree have Milan fans feeling some optimism again. But should we be optimistic? If hindsight is 20/20, then definitely not. But if you look carefully, there are some strands of hope we can perhaps cling to. But then again, we face Juventus this week, so if that doesn’t beat the optimism out of you then you may want to see a medical professional about that. Keeping him up late after the Parma game with a cold, I had the privilege of chatting with my Milan Obsession co-founder, Jovan. Of course he moved on to create the best fantasy football sites for the four major leagues, including fantasyseriea.com. We explored the current state of Milan, including: • News of the Week: Mexes meltdown, injuries, Honda at the Asian Cup, Ariedo Braida, the outline for the new stadium plans, and the Curva Sud speak. • Season to Date: results from the league and the Coppa Italia • Mercato Update: the latest news on Milan transfers ahead of Galliani Day™  • Inzaghi’s Report Card: how

Milan are in crisis mode again, or at least that’s what I’ve read. But between unrealistic expectations, poor results, a poor squad, and fans behaving badly, perhaps the trouble is not exactly what some think it is. But then again, if everyone thinks it, then Milan really are in trouble. Perspective is a very powerful thing. But perhaps the lack thereof is actually the trouble with Milan after all.   This time I chatted with Milano native and second generation Milanista Francesco, the original Milan Obsessed fan and President of the Curva Sud America (according to me, anyway.) When he’s not posting comments on the blog, he sometimes tweets @FrancescoPetra8, so do follow him. For this crisis Milan podcast, we talked about:     • News of the Week: Goal line technology, Taarabt still talking, injury woes • Season to Date: results from the league and the Coppa Italia  • Mercato Update: the latest news on Milan transfers • Milan Fan Rants: Anger, expectations, and class  • Coming Up: Upcoming matches and what to l

Milan have managed a treble this season… well if friendly trophies count for a treble, anyway. Which has got Milan fans everywhere dreaming big… maybe a little too big. After seeing our players drive Audis on a racetrack, sit in a Fly Emirates flight simulator, win awards that no one has heard of before and otherwise life the good life in Dubai and then beat Real Madrid in a friendly, it’s easy to get carried away. But it’s also important to remember where the club has been recently and consider what could be happening in the upcoming mercato. Things seem to be looking up, but Milan fans know all too well that things are not always what they seem to be at Milan anymore. That’s life. I was joined once again by Vinny, whom you may remember from that awesome YouTube sensation Red Card Weekly. He reportedly talks about Milan around the clock, even in his sleep, but you can catch his occasional tweets by following @RedCardWeekly. For this holiday podcast, we talked about: • News of the Week: Globe Soccer Awards, Z

Milan surprised at the beginning of the season, and again in the last two fixtures, with a win vs. Napoli and a draw with second place Roma. So we go into the holidays in seventh place, but only two points behind third place. These results have people dreaming of more than just sugarplums, but will Santa deliver the goods this Christmas for Milan fans? And if so, what exactly is it that he is supposed to deliver? What part of this season is fantasy and what part of it is reality? With pleas to Santa and coming off of a surprise result, Milanisti everywhere have plenty to talk about this Christmas break. My guest this time was Dave, the Milanista, comedian, teacher, new father, and former Bodega clerk of the fabulous @DaveLambComedy Twitter account. In his spare time, he writes the amazing game previews on pdacquaviva.com. For this holiday podcast, we talked about:  • News of the Week: Goal line technology, territorial discrimination, budget deficit, Happy 115th Milan  • Season to Date: Update on the season •

Since the last podcast, Milan produced a draw, a win, and then a loss, and have two big games looming before the end of the calendar year. We are still in search of consistency, and waiting for this team to make the San Siro a fortress again. The fans seem to be coming back, but will the team be able to soldier up and make other teams fear Milan at home? We discuss where the team is at now and some promising news for the future. Joining me this time to chat was the world traveler Derwuin. Having just come back from a trip to Milano for the Derby, we had lots to talk about. Follow him on Twitter @D_Mendez3 and be sure to check out his pics from his trip in his timeline, in this post or in this comment section. This time we chatted about: • News of the Week: Shirt sponsor extended, new stadium news, the quest for goal line technology • Season to Date: Update on the season   • Derby della Madnonnina: A first person report from the San Siro   • In Search of Defense: We discuss the defensive problems and individua

Despite early encouraging results, more recently the squad have shown that getting the Milan back that we know and love is not going to happen overnight. We fans have been tested already this season with a roller coaster first part of the season including wins, draws, losses, goals scored and conceded, and all of the hype that goes along with those things. Many of our players also want to play for their national teams, but how many of them will? We try to answer that and discuss the newer players and the season so far for you in this episode of Milan Impossible  My guest this time is the legendary David Swan, one of the rare and endangered English fans of Milan, Serie A, and the Italian National Team. You can follow him on Twitter @DavidLSwan and also check out his fantastic acmilanfinance.com site for the most accurate information about Milan’s finances in English, all in one place. For this podcast, we discussed: • News of the Week: When Amelia attacks, Milan lead at something, Berlusconi’s dream • Season t

 After a brief and very reluctant hiatus, the Milan Obsession Podcast is back… maybe. At least on an “as Elaine can find time to record” basis. So with seven weeks to catch up on, we tried to summarize the Milan team that is also back… maybe. With surprise wins, new players, an injury list that would make Allegri blush, and some experimental tactics, there was plenty to talk about during this international break. Served up with plenty of skepticism and a dash of that scarce thing called hope, now we’ll have to wait and see which comeback is more successful… Milan’s or the podcast’s.  Bringing back the podcast in style, Pete Acquaviva of the legendary DAI DAI DAI joined me. Pete is a longtime Milan fan who gives amazing analysis on his blog, contributes to other blogs and shows, and is also a great follow on Twitter. This time we chatted about: • News of the Week: Maldini recognized, Gandini begs, Galliani out of touch, and Inter suck • Season to Date: Where we are after the first 6 games • New Player Focus: W

A week that saw us lose our most talented player and then win the Trofeo TIM left Milan fans in a bit of shock and awe. With a mere seven days left in the mercato we are now at the mercy of Galliani and his ability to shake down other clubs for their players on loans and free transfers. But with another epic fail from management, the livers of Milan fans worldwide are suffering as if the season was well underway. And yet there is still a strange kind of anticipation as the season kicks off next week which makes our stomachs alternate between the nervous butterflies of the possibilities and the nausea of having been reamed once again by management. One thing is for sure, Balotelli has left Milanello, along with a lot of hopes and dreams.     I was joined this week by the guys from my favorite weekly Serie A review show, Red Card Weekly. Both Steve and Vinny are passionate Milan fans who love calcio and both took the time to share their opinions and humor about Milan with us in this episode. We discussed: • New

It has been a tough couple of years as a Milan fan, most recently trying to stomach the friendly performances here in the USA. But suddenly, we are feeling like we are in a fantasy with two big exits and a couple of even bigger new signings. Still shell shocked and not sure what to trust or who to believe, our discussion is candid, but shows some hope and optimism again with these new “fantasy” signings as well as the exit of Robinho and Constant. Even if Milan’s mercato ends here, there is a glimmer of hope that the club is doing something, even if we aren’t sure it is necessarily the right thing for the future.   This time I welcomed back my original Milan Obsession co-founder, Jovan, who is also the creator of four fantasy football games: Fantasy Serie A, Fantasy Bundesliga, Fantasy Liga, and the all new Fantasy Premier League. We discussed: • News of the Week: Season ticket fail, referees under attack, and FIGC election • Match Reviews and Previews: ICC Friendly: Liverpool 2, Milan and Chivas Guadalajara

After reasonable success in their friendlies against Lega Pro sides, Milan put in two very poor performances against real teams in the ICC Tournament friendlies thus far. The mercato shows no promise, and to make things worse, the Serie A schedule was released and we face a very difficult start. So if you still have any hopes for this season, your worst fears seem to be being realized. We tried to find the small positives in what is shaping up to be another very painful season for Milan fans. For this podcast, I was joined once again by the original Milan Obsession member, Francesco. We discussed:  • News of the Week: Away kit release, small victories, Balotelli’s PSA, Juventus Allegrified • Match Reviews and Previews: ICC Friendlies: Milan 0, Olympiacos 3; Milan 1, Manchester City 5. Coming up: Liverpool vs. Milan on Sat. Aug. 2nd, and Chivas Guadalajara vs. Milan on Wed. Aug. 6th  • Mercato News: Updates and rumors  • Where is the Youth? Will we see a lot of youth get time this year? • Douchebaggery Alert S

It’s that time of year. The squad returned to Milanello and were also presented at Casa Milan amongst a day of festivities and over 2,000 fans. The Curva Sud started the season off right with an open letter to the club, too. The mercato is now in full swing, with a number of Milan players already out on loan or sold, and a few new faces, too. So much change, but most heartening for fans were the words of Mister Inzaghi, who talked about the importance of “finding the right Milan DNA.” And that is exactly what I think fans want the club to achieve this summer in training, in the mercato, and especially as a team.  Returning again is the newly relocated podcast favorite Derek, now representing Milan in Colorado. We discussed: • News of the Week: Squad presentation, Curva Sud letter, Balotelli in the doghouse again • World Cup Update: final update from Brazil  • Mercato News: Who’s out, who’s in, and rumors  • New Boss: Mister Inzaghi • Douchebaggery Alert System™: Where Milan are this week Thanks once