News Focus
- Both AC Milan and Juventus finished outside the top four in Serie A this season
- The clubs dropped too many points against teams in the bottom half of the table
- Milan suffered costly home defeats to Cremonese, Parma, Udinese, Atalanta and Cagliari
- Juventus drew twice with relegated Hellas Verona and lost both matches against Como
- Inter Milan won the Scudetto thanks to consistent victories against smaller sides
AC Milan and Juventus will not compete in next season’s Champions League. Both clubs finished outside the qualification places in Serie A. New statistics reveal that poor results against smaller clubs caused this failure.
The Rossoneri remained in the top four from September until the final day. However, they suffered a 2-1 home defeat against Cagliari at the San Siro in their last match. This loss pushed them down to fifth place in the final table.
The data shows a clear weakness. Milan collected only 51 points from 84 available against teams outside the top six. They dropped 33 points in these fixtures. The side lost crucial home matches against Cremonese, Parma, Udinese, Atalanta and Cagliari. These slip-ups at the San Siro proved extremely costly.
Against the top six clubs, Milan actually performed well. They earned 19 points from 30 available. Their only defeat against a big team came away to Napoli in April.
Juventus followed a similar pattern. They took 57 points from 84 available against lower-ranked opponents. They dropped points with two draws against relegated Hellas Verona. They also lost both matches against Como, plus single defeats to Napoli and Inter.
Against the bigger clubs, Juventus actually had a worse record than Milan. This combination of results meant both sides missed out on Europe’s premier competition.
Inter Milan demonstrated the correct approach. Under manager Cristian Chivu, they occasionally lost important matches including both Milan derbies. However, they defeated almost every smaller team they faced. This consistency helped them win the Scudetto title comfortably.
The contrast is stark. While Inter took maximum points from weaker opponents, Milan and Juventus stumbled too frequently. These dropped points created the gap between Champions League football and Europa League football for next season.