Everyone has heard the old footballing cliché of a "game of two halves" but AC Milan produced what will be viewed as almost a season of two halves. Not many would have predicted that the Rossoneri would finish in the Champions League qualifying places come the end of the season having looked at the state of the club in the early months of the campaign. Massive names left the San Siro including top scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic and their best defender Thiago Silva, who both joined PSG. Antonio Cassano was flogged to rivals Inter. Meanwhile, there was a huge clearout of the old guard with the likes of Filippo Inzaghi, Gennaro Gattuso, Alessandro Nesta, Clarence Seedorf and Gianluca Zambrotta all departing. Change was certainly needed as those players had come towards the end of glittering careers but the task of replacing such a plethora of experience and quality was a mammoth one. It was an unenviable job left to Massimiliano Allegri who was not given anywhere near the sufficient funds in the transfer market to make up for those kinds of losses. Riccardo Montolivo and Giampaolo Pazzini were the only really significant buys with a glut of other less than inspiring signings. It meant a Milan starting eleven that was almost unrecognisable at the start of the season and the early results seemed to display a distinct lack of quality in the side. Allegri's men were closer to the relegation places than to the top of the table and were out of title contention long before Christmas. There was one saving grace in the side and it was the rise to prominence of youngster Stephan El Shaarawy, who took his newly acquired responsibility by the scruff of the neck and was a prolific goalscorer for the first half of the season. Milan's fortunes had already begun to change towards the end of 2012 but it was the new year that really saw the best of Allegri's young team. There were a few turning points including an inspiring home win over Barcelona in the Champions League. However, surely the catalyst for Milan's incredible run in 2013 was the acquisition of the lovable rogue that is Mario Balotelli. The controversial forward arrived from Manchester City in January and immediately made the San Siro his own, this time playing for the Red and Black half of Milan as he'd always dreamt of doing. His arrival lifted the mood around the club and they only lost once in Serie A in 2013. "Super Mario" bagged 12 goals in 13 appearances whilst also winning and scoring a crucial penalty on the final day against Siena which helped secure third place. Despite Motolivo's gradually influential performances in the centre of the park, El Shaarawy's blistering early season goalscoring form and Mattia De Sciglio's emergence as an ambidextrous full-back who can operate effectively on either flank, it was Balotelli who made the biggest impact of the season. A word must also go to Allegri who kept his dignity in the face of constant speculation about his future and was able to make the best of an almost impossible situation. He has been rewarded for his efforts as the club have announced he will stay on as manager despite strong interest from Roma. He'll hope to have more money to spend in the transfer window to make Milan title challengers again.
