Milan Obsession

At a point when our mercato should be taking shape and all of us getting excited for the Europa League and the season, we still have no idea whether or not we will be playing in Europa League. Which has put our mercato completely on hold and intensified rumors surrounding the financial stability of the club. Of course, there's plenty of other corruption and douchebaggery in Italy to discuss, but it doesn't change Milan fans' unresolved pain.

I always enjoy going back to the beginning, and for Milan Obsession, that beginning included Jovan. A lifelong Milan fan and knowledgeable football connoisseur, he and I talked about:

• News of the Week: extension, criminals, women, Supercoppa, broadcasting rights fail, new coaches, corruption, tennis, shame, farewell
• World Cup: Is there a World Cup going on or something?
• UEFA Ruling: still no answers
• Important Summer Dates: when and where Milan will be

Thanks again to Jovan for listening to the rants and being willing to talk Milan when there's not a lot of great stuff to talk about.

A season that was supposed to redeem Milan and the hopes of Milan fans took a sharp turn downwards with UEFA's announcement that they refused to give Milan a settlement agreement. Despite the damper that put on the season and the far reaching implications that the news creates for our future, it was a good time to sit down and reflect on the team and all of our players.

When you want a balanced perspective on Milan, you should talk to Pete. So follow him on Twitter @PDAcquaviva. To wrap up all of the disappointment of this season, we discussed:

• News of the Week: dumped by an ex, players announcing themselves, a non-European Champions League, breaking wind
• Player Ratings: Who should stay and who should go
• Gattuso: his future at Milan
• Yonghong Li, UEFA, and the Elliott Fund: fact vs. fiction

Thanks again to Pete for being willing to drudge through the disappointments and dissect our players' season instead of sleeping or something productive. Please follow him @PDAcquaviva on Twitter.

There is plenty to talk about at the end of the season, especially our first full season under our new management. But in addition to everything on the pitch, fans have created a controversy that is literally larger than life. And I am not happy about it. So for this episode, you get to hear me rant. A lot.

Nothing is better than talking to a true Milan fan. Unless you get to talk to a true Milan fan who has also played professionally. That is why I asked Intern Jonathan on once again. In between rants, we chatted about:

• News of the Week: Visit from the President, awards, Nesta in Serie B, Italy National Team, contract extension, best keeper in Serie B, Parma promotion, new partnership, Biglia news
• Season Update: Serie A update
• Donnarumma Rant: will Elaine's head explode?
• Bonucci's Leadership: meeting Ermanno
• Coming up: Upcoming matches

Thanks again to Jonathan for listening patiently to my rants and being the best intern ever.

After a season of hot and cold performances, looming ahead of us is a cold, dark mercato where there is more confusion than clarity. Despite a meeting with UEFA and a shareholder's meeting, there are more questions than answers coming from management. And to make matters worse, the future of Mirabelli at Milan is also swirling with rumors and speculation, leaving us further in the depths of confusion

Milan's recent years have been so traumatic, longtime Milan fan David has become slightly confused about his allegiance. I think he checked out before Allegri left, so he doesn't realize that Allegri has been at Juve all of these years. You can follow him on Twitter @DavidLSwan to witness the confusion yourself. But I always feel bad for people with traumatic injuries, so I invited him on the podcast again. We discussed:

• News of the Week: New leaked kits, Ciao Oddo, Pirlo's big night, second teams coming, Biglia's injury
• Season Update: Serie A update
• Mirabelli rumors: will he stay or go?
• Financial Update: update on Milan finances
• Coming up: Upcoming matches

Thanks again to David for being a great sport and for humoring me my fashion expertise. Follow him on Twitter @DavidLSwan to see if you can figure out which team he supports.

In six days we played three games and went from good to okay to the worst just like that. We also lost another starter to a season-ending injury. Milan·s scoring problem is finally unable to be ignored, and the historic worst game was enough to suck the

We hit a bit of a wall in our march toward a return to Champions League, with a loss and two draws in our last three matches. But whatever frustration we have with results and injuries, we also are blessed with a great leader to see us through the tough times. Whatever differences people may have, the one thing I think we can all agree on is that we are all on Team Gattuso.

Every team needs players like my new intern Jonathan. He can start, play 90 minutes, or be a super sub when needed. For this podcast, he stepped up once again and we talked about:

• News of the Week: Conti setback, hair challenge, best gamers, leaked new kits, Gattuso renewal, more Calciopoli snakes
• Season Update: Serie A update
• Gattuso's Press Conferences: rating the big man's words
• Coming up: Upcoming matches

Thanks again to Jonathan for being an ideal intern and super sub and for sharing his wisdom and love of Milan with us.

For the past six years or more, Milan fans have been clinging to any hope available, with our dreams being crushed repeatedly like the endless crashing waves in the sea. But now, something has changed. Both on and off of the pitch, fans no longer have to cling to hopes. We have belief.

If you want someone with incredible prognosticating powers, then Vinny is your man. You can listen to Vinny and his sidekick on the Milan Weekly Pod and also follow on Twitter @MilanWeeklyPod and also @ACMClubMTL. He shared his genius with us once again:

• News of the Week: Live action Mario Kart, positive stats, Coppa Italia Final announced, ICC tournament news, Elaine fangirling
• Sacchi's Sanity: quotes from the maestro
• Season Update: Europa League and Serie A update
• Injuries: update on injured players
• International Duty: update on players playing for their national teams
• Milan's Financial Situation: sifting through the media garbage
• Coming up: Upcoming matches

Thanks again to Vinny for sharing his genius and especially for the amazing prediction of our unbeaten streak. Listen for more of his genius on Milan Weekly Pod and follow them on Twitter @MilanWeeklyPod or on @ACMClubMTL

Milan has made great strides forward recently on the pitch. And despite recent hiccups, a 13 game unbeaten streak with six consecutive wins and six consecutive clean sheets is some incredibly positive momentum. But stepping back and looking to where we were a year ago, just before the sale of the club, there is even more forward progress. Fans of every kind are already beginning to forget what the club has been through over the past six years and look forward to even better times ahead.

Pete joined us again to offer his wisdom and perspective. And speaking of wisdom and perspective, you can get more of it by following him on Twitter @PDAcquaviva. After the Genoa match, we talked about:

• News of the Week: Kit sponsor, coach salary, free agents, Bachelor Milan Edition, VAR, rescheduling the Derby
• Gattuso Gem of the Week: quote of the week from the Mister
• Season Update: Europa League and Serie A update
• Looking Back: how Milan has changed in the past year
• Fanship: looking at Milan and Arsenal from both sides
• Coming up: Upcoming matches

Thanks again to Pete for his wisdom and insights. Follow him on Twitter to abuse him or to enjoy watching others abuse him @PDAcquaviva

Games were canceled this weekend to show respect for a player who slipped away too soon. The loss of Davide Astori allowed us to take some time to consider what is really important and to pay our respects. And in that spirit of respect, we also decided to have a conversation ahead of the Europa League match with Arsenal from both sides of the stadium.

Adam is the host of Touchline Radio Podcast, and a devout Arsenal fan (with a place in his heart for Milan.) You can also follow him on Twitter @TouchlineRadio or on Instagram or Facebook, or listen to his podcast on Soundcloud, iTunes, or acast. Despite being frenemies for the next two weeks, we had a great conversation about our respective teams. We talked about:

• Astori Tribute: emotions for the loss our former Milan youth player
• Maldini Moment: quote of the week from the legend
• Europa League: looking at Milan and Arsenal from both sides
• Coming up: Upcoming matches

Thanks again to Adam for sharing his passion about Arsenal and his love of football. Follow him on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook and listen in on Soundcloud, iTunes, or acast.

Celebrating five years of the podcast with a positive string of results is apparently enough to bring optimism to even the most practical of Milan fans. So much optimism, in fact, that we're still having dreams of Europe. But with players like Borini scoring, the sky is the limit as far as our dreams go.

In my search to talk with Milan fans all over the world, I invited Jonathan to the podcast all the way from Toronto, Canada. We talked about:

• News of the Week: Social media backlash, red card records, Inter suck, ruling China, Coach Seedorf, FIGC leadership, Primavera awesome
• Season Update: update on Serie A & Coppa Italia matches
• Mercato: report on the end of the winter mercato
• Moving Forward: discussing tactics and our forwards
• European Dreams: talking Europa League and Champions League

• Coming up: Upcoming matches

Thanks again to Jonathan for some great conversation. Fiorentina are worse off, and Milan are so lucky for your devotion.