AC Milan 2012: Bold Predictions for Milan's 2012-13 Serie A Season

In a season where some Milan fans have been demanding refunds for season tickets before the first ball has even been kicked, the casual observer would be forgiven for thinking that doom and gloom was prevailing at the San Siro.

However, is the situation really so bad for the Rossoneri?

With competitive action still not underway in Italy, there's still everything to play for. In this article, I look at the upsides that Milan can conceivably hope for this term, and the targets they should be setting for themselves.

Without question, a club like AC Milan should always be targeting the league title, and the team's fans will never be happy with anything less than the Scudetto. The general perception is that, having lost Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva to Paris Saint-Germain, Milan are in a far less competitive position than they have been in the past two years.

But is this really the case? 

It's an extremely contentious position to take, but there is an argument for a team without the great Swede having a greater freedom in its play than one with him. 

The problem, which was clearly highlighted in the recent Berlusconi Trophy, is that all Milan's play has been directed through Ibrahimovic in the last year. In the aforementioned 3-2 loss to champions Juventus, Milan were still attempting to play this way despite the obvious lack of a focal point. 

If they expect any one of Alexandre Pato, Stephan El-Shaarawy or Giampaolo Pazzini to fulfill the exact same role as Ibrahimovic, Milan's success will be limited.

What they can do, however, is use this as an opportunity to develop a more varied, nuanced attacking style. In Riccardo Montolivo, Kevin-Prince Boateng and Robinho, they have three players who are very comfortable in possession, not to mention the attacking qualities that fullbacks Ignazio Abate — who impressed at Euro 2012 — and Luca Antonini possess.

Much will depend on Montolivo's ability to fill the Andrea Pirlo-shaped hole that helped to create an increased dependence on Ibrahimovic, but if he can adapt to his new environs quickly, we may see an exciting midfield trio with Antonio Nocerino and Urby Emanuelson.

Therefore, are Milan really, man for man, inferior than Juventus or Inter? If the below starting XI can gel, the personnel have the ability to spring a surprise.

Possible Milan XI: Abbiati, Mexes, Yepes, Antonini, Abate, Nocerino, Emmanuelson, Boateng, Robinho, Pazzini/Pato

This year's Champions League field is possibly one of the strongest in recent memory. 

Unlike recent years, where Barcelona have been the obvious favourites, this year is likely to see strong challenges from both Manchester clubs, defending champions Chelsea, the unfortunate runners-up of last year Bayern Munich, a rejuvenated Juventus, not to mention the most successful club in European history in Real Madrid. 

So, reaching the semifinal of this tournament is actually a more ambitious taget than winning the league for il diavolo.

The weakest point of the starting XI listed on the last slide is the central defensive pairing. Losing both Thiago Silva and Alessandro Nesta is the biggest hammer-blow delivered to this Milan team over the summer, so ensuring the lack of pace in the centre of defence is not exposed will be their biggest challenge. 

Whilst making allusions to the "tiki-taka" of Barcelona is a crime committed by virtually every manager these days, keeping control of possession and, as a result, allowing the defence to hold a deeper line will be key.

With such high-quality opposition throughout the draw, Milan will hope to not be as unlucky as last year — facing Barcelona in four games was probably the hardest thing that could have been asked of them — but with the luck of the draw, Milan should at least set their sights on the semis, at which point anything can happen.

As mentioned in the introduction, these are targets that a club like Milan must always aspire to, but they are also the upsides if everything falls into place — not the stark, worst-case-scenario.

Realistically, during this time of restructuring, Milan would do well to take the domestic cup competition a little more seriously than in recent years. Theirs is not the deepest squad in world football, so it may be tempting to rest players for the early stages of the competition, but getting some silverware on the board wouldn't go amiss in a reboot year.

Furthermore, the more time Massimiliano Allegri's new-look side get to play together, the more quickly their passing game — with less reliance on a big target man — will improve.

Perennial injury worries like Pato may not want to be risked in an away game in October against Rimini (for example), but players like El-Shaaraway will benefit from more playing time.

Turning these promising youngsters into full-fledged stars has long since been a problem at Milan — look at the struggles Klaas-Jan Huntelaar had before flourishing at Schalke — and if doing so has the added benefit of bringing some extra glory, it would certainly be worth it.