Wikipedia

1987–88 AC Milan season

During the 1987–88 season, Milan Associazione Calcio competed in Serie A, Coppa Italia and UEFA Cup.

AC Milan
1987–88 season
OwnerSilvio Berlusconi
PresidentSilvio Berlusconi
ManagerArrigo Sacchi
StadiumSan Siro
Serie AWinners
(in 1988-89 European Cup and
1988 Supercoppa Italiana)
Coppa ItaliaRound of 16
UEFA CupRound of 32
Top goalscorerLeague: Paolo Virdis (11)
All: Paolo Virdis (15)
Average home league attendance72,177
All statistics correct as of 15 May 1988.

Summary edit

Silvio Berlusconi appointed Arrigo Sacchi as the new head coach, who in the previous season with Parma had faced Milan in the Coppa Italia three times and subsequently eliminated the Rossoneri, in the process impressing Berlusconi with the team's style of play.[1][2] The transfer market brought two Dutch players to Milan: Marco van Basten and Ruud Gullit, taken respectively from Ajax and PSV, in place of the English Ray Wilkins and Mark Hateley.[3] Angelo Colombo and Carlo Ancelotti joined in midfield. The coach from Fusignano could thus count on a young squad, which could allow him to fight in the league against reigning champions Napoli. The squad was already made up of a strong defense led by captain Franco Baresi and which included Paolo Maldini, Filippo Galli, Mauro Tassotti as well as the substitutes Alessandro Costacurta (who will make his debut in the first team during the season) and the new signing Roberto Mussi. Thanks to the play-off won at the end of the 1986–87 season against Sampdoria, the Rossoneri regained access to Europe by participating in the UEFA Cup. Due to the disqualification of the Meazza (because of incidents during the match against Waregem on 11 December 1985), the club decided to play its home games at the Via del mare stadium in Lecce.[4][5] In the Coppa Italia, Milan got through the first round, finishing their group in second place: they won four matches and lost only one, on penalties, against Parma.

The league began with the victory at Pisa, in which Van Basten (on his debut in Italy) scored the final 3–1 from a penalty kick. Milan then eliminated Sporting de Gijón in the UEFA Cup after losing the first leg 1–0 and winning the second leg 3–0 at the Via del Mare. On the league's fifth day, in the match against Sampdoria, Van Basten suffered an injury that would put him out of action until April. The journey in Europe ended in the next round, against another Spanish team: Espanyol, victorious away, in Lecce (2–0), and capable of imposing a goalless draw at home.[6] Two months after the Dutchman's injury, Milan beat Roma at the San Siro, but the match was later abandoned by the referee due to a firecracker from the Milan stand that had hit the Giallorossi goalkeeper Tancredi. The calendar year ended with a victory in the derby, achieved by beating Inter 1–0: Milan thus had 16 points in the standings, 5 less than leaders Napoli. The first match of 1988 had the challenge against the Neapolitans on the calendar, which the Rossoneri won with an imposing 4–1; the 3–1 goal was scored by Gullit, who had just been awarded the 1987 Ballon d'Or. Three days later, the team defeated Ascoli in the first leg of the round of 16 of the Coppa Italia: in the second leg, the score of 1–0 was overturned by Ascoli who would then win on penalties.

In the second half of the season, in the league, Sacchi's team didn't suffer any setbacks and recovered ground against Napoli.[7][8][9] In the 25th round, Van Basten returned to the pitch after six months of absence, and scored the winning goal against Empoli. This success was followed by victories against Roma and Inter, which made it possible to reduce the gap from Napoli to just one point, on the eve of the crucial match. At the San Paolo, Milan defeated the hosts again, this time 3–2 with a double by Virdis and Van Basten, who responded to Maradona and Careca. The result promoted the Rossoneri to first place in the standings, with an advantage of one point.[10] The position was defended in the two remaining games, thanks to draws with Juventus and Como, giving Milan the Scudetto, their eleventh overall, as well as the first after nine years.[11]

Squad edit

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— GK   ITA Giovanni Galli
— GK   ITA Giulio Nuciari
— DF   ITA Franco Baresi
— DF   SUI Walter Bianchi
— DF   ITA Alessandro Costacurta
— DF   ITA Filippo Galli
— DF   ITA Paolo Maldini
— DF   ITA Roberto Mussi
— DF   ITA Mauro Tassotti
— DF   ITA Rufo Emiliano Verga
— MF   ITA Carlo Ancelotti
No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF   ITA Mario Bortolazzi
— MF   ITA Angelo Colombo
— MF   ITA Roberto Donadoni
— MF   ITA Alberigo Evani
— MF   NED Ruud Gullit
— FW   NED Marco van Basten
— FW   ITA Daniele Massaro
— FW   ITA Pietro Paolo Virdis
— FW   ITA Massimiliano Cappellini
— FW   ITA Graziano Mannari

Transfers edit

Competitions edit

Serie A edit

Main article: 1987–88 Serie A

League table edit

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Milan (C) 30 17 11 2 43 14 +29 45 Qualification to European Cup
2 Napoli 30 18 6 6 55 27 +28 42 Qualification to UEFA Cup
3 Roma 30 15 8 7 39 26 +13 38
4 Sampdoria 30 13 11 6 41 30 +11 37 Qualification to Cup Winners' Cup
5 Internazionale 30 11 10 9 42 35 +7 32 Qualification to UEFA Cup
Source: 1987–88 Serie A,RSSSF.com
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Goal difference; 5) Goals scored; 6) Draw.[12]
(C) Champions

Results by round edit

Round123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930
GroundHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAAHAHAHAHAH
ResultWLDWDWDWWDLWWWWWDWDWDDWDWWWWDD
Position168552432244222222222222222111
Source: Competitive matches
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss;   = 1988–89 European Cup;   = 1988–89 UEFA Cup

Matches edit

13 September 1987 1 Pisa 1–3 Milan Pisa
Cecconi   53' Report Donadoni   16'
Gullit   73'
van Basten   80' (pen.)		 Stadium: Arena Garibaldi
Attendance: 26,728
Referee: Luigi Agnolin
20 September 1987 2 Milan 0–2 Fiorentina Milan
Report Díaz   76'
R. Baggio   78'		 Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 74,880
Referee: Pietro D'elia
27 September 1987 3 Cesena 0–0 Milan Cesena
Report Stadium: Stadio Dino Manuzzi
Attendance: 29,681
Referee: Paolo Bergamo
4 October 1987 4 Milan 2–0 Ascoli Milan
Virdis   35'
Evani   82'		 Report Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 74,928
Referee: Pierluigi Pairetto
11 October 1987 5 Sampdoria 1–1 Milan Genoa
Vialli   53' Report Gullit   51' Stadium: Stadio Luigi Ferraris
Attendance: 16,905
Referee: Tullio Lanese
25 October 1987 6 Verona 0–1 Milan Verona
Report Virdis   41' Stadium: Stadio Marc'Antonio Bentegodi
Attendance: 44,419
Referee: Rosario Lo Bello
1 November 1987 7 Milan 0–0 Torino Milan
Report Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 72,815
Referee: Luigi Agnolin
8 November 1987 8 Pescara 0–2 Milan Pescara
Report Virdis   28'
Bortolazzi   86'		 Stadium: Stadio Adriatico
Attendance: 29,486
Referee: Pierluigi Pairetto
22 November 1987 9 Milan 3–0 Avellino Milan
Colombo   6'
Donadoni   67'
Maldini   74'		 Report Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 68,536
Referee: Werther Cornieti
29 November 1987 10 Empoli 0–0 Milan Empoli
Report Stadium: Stadio Carlo Castellani
Attendance: 13,955
Referee: Salvatore Lombardo
13 December 1987 11 Milan 0–2 (abd) Roma Milan
Virdis   83' (pen.) Report Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 70,887
Referee: Pietro D'Elia
Note: The win was awarded to Roma due to a firecracker that hit the Giallorossi's goalkeeper Franco Tancredi at the start of the second half. He was hit on the head by a firework thrown by a A.C. Milan supporter. Tancredi stopped breathing for a short time but was eventually resuscitated by paramedics.
20 December 1987 12 Internazionale 0–1 Milan Milan
Report Ferri   4' (o.g.) Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 67,545
Referee: Tullio Lanese
3 January 1988 13 Milan 4–1 Napoli Milan
Colombo   19'
Virdis   24'
Gullit   73'
Donadoni   78'		 Report Careca   10' Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 75,519
Referee: Luigi Agnolin
10 January 1988 14 Juventus 0–1 Milan Turin
Report Gullit   62' Stadium: Stadio Comunale di Torino
Attendance: 59,376
Referee: Carlo Longhi
17 January 1988 15 Milan 5–0 Como Milan
Donadoni   30'
Virdis   49'
Gullit   61', 88'
Ancelotti   73'		 Report Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 68,947
Referee: Werther Cornieti
24 January 1988 16 Milan 1–0 Pisa Milan
Colombo   27' Report Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 70,523
Referee: Pierluigi Pairetto
31 January 1988 17 Fiorentina 1–1 Milan Florence
Di Chiara   49' Report Baresi   74' (pen.) Stadium: Stadio Comunale (Florence)
Attendance: 52,068
Referee: Gianluca Paparesta
7 February 1988 18 Milan 3–0 Cesena Milan
Gullit   13'
Evani   72'
Massaro   83'		 Report Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 68,512
Referee: Luciano Luci
14 February 1988 19 Ascoli 1–1 Milan Ascoli Piceno
Destro   47' Report Massaro   66' Stadium: Stadio Cino e Lillo Del Duca
Attendance: 22,678
Referee: Werther Cornieti
28 February 1988 20 Milan 2–1 Sampdoria Milan
Virdis   7'
Maldini   70'		 Report Bonomi   16' (pen.) Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 72,568
Referee: Luigi Agnolin
6 March 1988 21 Milan 0–0 Verona Milan
Report Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 71,208
Referee: Salvatore Lombardo
13 March 1988 22 Torino 1–1 Milan Turin
Bresciani   77' Report Ancelotti   78' Stadium: Stadio Comunale di Torino
Attendance: 38,857
Referee: Rosario Lo Bello
20 March 1988 23 Milan 2–0 Pescara Milan
Massaro   2'
Gullit   47'		 Report Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 71,336
Referee: Fabio Baldas
27 March 1988 24 Avellino 0–0 Milan Avellino
Report Stadium: Stadio Partenio
Attendance: 39,898
Referee: Carlo Longhi
10 April 1988 25 Milan 1–0 Empoli Milan
van Basten   61' Report Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 72,763
Referee: Rosario Lo Bello
17 April 1988 26 Roma 0–2 Milan Rome
Report Virdis   25'
Massaro   85'		 Stadium: Stadio Olimpico
Attendance: 59,455
Referee: Pierluigi Pairetto
24 April 1988 27 Milan 2–0 Internazionale Milan
Gullit   43'
Virdis   53'		 Report Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 75,503
Referee: Carlo Longhi
1 May 1988 28 Napoli 2–3 Milan Naples
Maradona   45'
Careca   78'		 Report Virdis   36', 68'
van Basten   76'		 Stadium: Stadio San Paolo
Attendance: 82,824
Referee: Rosario Lo Bello
8 May 1988 29 Milan 0–0 Juventus Milan
Report Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 75,505
Referee: Tullio Lanese
15 May 1988 30 Como 1–1 Milan Como
Giunta   46' Report Virdis   2' Stadium: Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia
Attendance: 25,036
Referee: Sergio Coppetelli

Coppa Italia edit

Main article: 1987–88 Coppa Italia

First round

23 August 1987 1 Milan 5–0 Bari Milan
Donadoni   3'
Virdis   21'
van Basten   55'
Gullit   57'
Massaro   70'		 Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 27 962
Referee: Pairetto
26 August 1987 2 Como 1–2 Milan Como
Borgonovo   67'   8' Gullit
  36' van Basten		 Stadium: Giuseppe Sinigaglia
Attendance: 17 000
Referee: Bergamo
30 August 1987 3 Monza 0–2 Milan Milan
  12', 83' van Basten Stadium: San Siro[13]
Attendance: 44 568
Referee: Luci
2 September 1987 4 Milan 2–2
(3–4 p)		 Parma Milan
van Basten   15'
Gullit   80'		   42' Zannoni
  58' (aut.) F. Galli		 Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 44 179
Referee: Coppetelli
Penalties
van Basten  
Bortolazzi  
Donadoni  
Baresi  
Ancelotti  		   Zannoni
  Carboni
  Pasa
  Di Fabio
  Fiorin
6 September 1987 5 Barletta 1–1
(3–5 p)		 Milan Bari
Bonaldi   87'   59' Donadoni Stadium: Stadio della Vittoria[14]
Attendance: 10 000
Referee: Baldas
Penalties
Di Sarno  
Cossato  
Mazzaferro  
Rovani  		   van Basten
  Baresi
  Ancelotti
  Colombo
  Donadoni

Eightfinals

6 January 1988 Milan 0–1 Ascoli Milan
  59' Destro Stadium: San Siro
Attendance: 13 808
Referee: Paparesta
20 January 1988 Ascoli 0–1
(4–2 p)		 Milan Ascoli Piceno
  9' Virdis Stadium: Cino e Lillo Del Duca
Attendance: 14 910
Referee: D'Elia
Penalties
Giovannelli  
Casagrande  
Greco  
Benetti  
Destro  		   Virdis
  Bortolazzi
  Donadoni
  Baresi

UEFA Cup edit

Main article: 1987–88 UEFA Cup

First round

16 September 1987   Sporting Gijon 1–0 Milan Gijón
Jaime   69' Report Stadium: El Molinon
Attendance: 26 000
Referee:  Bridges
30 September 1987 Milan 3–0   Sporting Gijon Lecce
Virdis   21' (rig.), 45' (rig.)
Gullit   43'		 Report Stadium: Stadio Via del Mare[15]
Attendance: 35,488
Referee:  Petrović

Second round

21 October 1987 Milan 0–2   Espanyol Lecce
Report   40' Zubillaga
  49' Pichi Alonso		 Stadium: Stadio Via del Mare[15]
Attendance: 29 102
Referee:  Syme
4 November 1987   Espanyol 0–0 Milan Barcelona
Report Stadium: Sarria
Attendance: 30 000
Referee:  Ponnet

Statistics edit

Squad statistics edit

Competition[16] Points Home Away Total GD
G W D L Gs Ga G W D L Gs Ga G W D L Gs Ga
1987-88 Serie A 45 15 10 3 2 25 6 15 7 8 0 18 8 30 17 11 2 43 14 +29
  1987-88 Coppa Italia – 3 1 1 1 7 3 4 3 1 0 6 2 7 4 2 1 13 5 +8
1987-88 UEFA Cup – 2 1 0 1 3 2 2 0 1 1 0 1 4 1 1 2 3 3 0
Total – 20 12 4 4 35 11 21 10 10 1 24 11 41 22 14 5 59 22 +37

Players statistics edit

No. Pos Nat Player Total Serie A Coppa Italia UEFA Cup
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
GK   ITA G. Galli 40 -12 30 -12 7 0 3 0
DF   ITA Tassotti 39 0 28 0 7 0 4 0
DF   ITA Galli 40 0 30 0 7 0 3 0
DF   ITA Baresi 36 1 27 1 6 0 3 0
DF   ITA Maldini 29 2 26 2 1 0 2 0
MF   ITA Donadoni 39 6 28+1 4 7 2 3 0
MF   ITA Ancelotti 38 2 27 2 7 0 4 0
MF   ITA Colombo 35 3 26 3 5 0 4 0
MF   ITA Evani 30 2 22+5 2 2 0 1 0
FW   NED Gullit 39 13 29 9 6 3 4 1
FW   ITA Virdis 33 15 23+2 11 4 2 4 2
GK   ITA Nuciari 2 -1 0 0 2 -1 0 -0
DF   SUI Bianchi 10 0 1+2 0 4 0 3 0
DF   ITA Costacurta 8 0 2+5 0 1 0 0 0
DF   ITA Mussi 18 0 6+5 0 4 0 3 0
DF   ITA Verga 3 0 0+3 0 0 0 0 0
MF   ITA Bortolazzi 22 1 6+7 1 7 0 2 0
FW   ITA Massaro 35 5 15+11 4 7 1 2 0
FW   NED van Basten 19 8 4+7 3 5 5 3 0
FW   ITA Cappellini 2 0 0+2 0 0 0 0 0
FW   ITA Mannari 1 0 0+1 0 0 0 0 0

References edit

  1. ^ Gianni Mura (July 3, 1987). "E un giorno Sacchi giocò in difesa". la Repubblica (in Italian). p. 45.
  2. ^ Gianni Mura (July 28, 1987). "Straordinari per il Milan". la Repubblica (in Italian). p. 20.
  3. ^ Fabrizio Bocca (July 1, 1987). "Milan, Juve e Roma sconvolte Hanno già prenotato i migliori". la Repubblica (in Italian). p. 23.
  4. ^ Licia Granello (September 17, 1987). "Il Milan è un gigante smarrito". la Repubblica (in Italian). p. 18.
  5. ^ Licia Granello (October 1, 1987). "È un Milan preciso". la Repubblica (in Italian). p. 20.
  6. ^ "Il Milan è già disperato". repubblica.it (in Italian). Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  7. ^ Gianni Brera (November 24, 1987). "Caro Napoli, vai troppo forte". la Repubblica (in Italian). p. 33.
  8. ^ Licia Granello (January 20, 1988). "Il mio calcio è come un look". la Repubblica (in Italian). p. 30.
  9. ^ Gianni Brera (January 26, 1988). "Ma anche le grandi sentono la fatica". la Repubblica (in Italian). p. 24.
  10. ^ Licia Granello (May 3, 1988). "Ma non è ancora scudetto". la Repubblica (in Italian). p. 34.
  11. ^ "Cari campioni, vi vedo così..." repubblica.it (in Italian). Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  12. ^ "Norme organizzative interne della F.I.G.C. - Art. 51.6" (PDF) (in Italian). Italian Football Federation. 12 September 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
  13. ^ Stadium chosen due to is more attendance-capacity than Stadio Brianteo: Nino Sormani (31 August 1987), "Primi fischi per il Milan olandese", La Stampa, p. 20
  14. ^ Due to no authorized Barletta: Panini 1989, p. 482.
  15. ^ a b Due to San Siro was suspended, Milan has played the match in Lecce; cfr. Luca Argentieri (10 July 1987), "Real – Napoli è già finale", la Repubblica, p. 31
  16. ^ "Milan Associazione Calcio 1987–88". magliarossonera.it. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  17. ^ "Milan Associazione Calcio 1987–88" (in Italian). magliarossonera.it. Retrieved 24 May 2023.

Works cited edit

  • Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio 1989 (in Italian). Modena: Panini Group. 1988.

Sources edit

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