Wake me up when Serie A ends [Newsletter]

May 06, 2026

😧 Sleepless nights await… or?

Sunday’s defeat to Sassuolo has definitely reignited the top-four race for Milan, in the wrong direction, and this time for real. With three games remaining, the Rossoneri are now just five points ahead of sixth place (!) and could drop out of the Champions League zone as early as this weekend. Nearly, anyway, as they still have head-to-head advantage over Roma (three points behind).

At this point, there’s no denying what can only be described as a total collapse: a whopping five defeats and only four wins in the last ten games. Whopping is indeed the right word as Milan had only lost one game in 25 before that period, which helped them at least stay in the Scudetto race. Who knows if we will even qualify for the Champions League now…

I was going to say that there will be many sleepless nights for the Rossoneri fans in the coming weeks, but I’m not even sure that’s the case. Most of us, including yours truly, seem fed up with the season already and there’s almost an acceptance of missing out on top four again. Maybe acceptance is the wrong word, but is getting Furlani sacked instead of UCL football a tradeoff some would accept? I think so.

🎯 Aim small, miss small

This saying couldn’t have been any more appropriate for Milan’s current situation. In literally every interview you have seen with Gerry Cardinale or the rest of the Rossoneri top brass, comparisons have consistently been made with other big clubs in Europe’s top five leagues. We get it, Milan is a prestigious club that should aim to eventually make it back, but right now, the focus has to be narrowed.

What good does it do to keep talking about Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, or even PSG, if we can’t even compete for the domestic title? Let alone consistently secure top four, which has been the bare minimum set out by the management. Perhaps that bare minimum should become an actual focus, as crazy as that sounds, given how we are all fed up with just going for the Champions League.

However, my point is that Milan haven’t even truly invested to compete in the top-four race properly. Just take this season as an example. The whole premise for the summer signings to work was to get knocked out of the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italiana early, giving more or less full focus to the league, and even then the squad was highly questionable from the get-go. Sigh…

📋 Milan Bulletin

Below, we have collected the most important Milan news from the last week, including our longer reads, match results and newspaper reports.

⚽ Match Results

Milan Futuro ended the regular season with a massive 10-1 win, running riot against a struggling Vogherese side. The goals came from the following: Pagliei, Magrassi (x3); an own-goal, Branca, Perera, Menon, Balentien and Traorè. In the play-offs, Oddo’s side will travel to Verona to take on Chievo - who we’ve beaten twice this season - on Sunday 10 May at 15:00 CEST.

Milan Primavera dropped points when they drew 1-1 against Monza. Scotti got his 10th of the season and Vincent Ibrahimovic made his first start for the team. The point earned takes the unbeaten run to seven games and moves the Rossoneri up to 48 points in the table, where they remain 12th.

The second derby of the Serie A Women season ended 1-0 to Inter, a result that secured second place for the Nerazzurre and effectively brings Milan’s hunt for Champions League qualification to an end. Bakker’s side undoubtedly deserved a better result at the Arena Civica in a hard-fought game, but Bugeja got the only goal just before the break.

📰 Latest News

After a season spent inside the top four, Milan are having to contemplate life without Champions League football. If the collapse were completed, there could be a huge fall-out, seeing the likes of Modric and Allegri leave, while stars could be sold and a low-cost mercato would follow. So, Max must make some adjustments to get the team over the line, and he is plotting a few already.

Mercato round-up: A Manchester City defender is on the radar again; a Sassuolo star has piqued Allegri’s interest; Champions League is crucial for the pursuit of a Bayern Munich midfielder; a PSG forward has been offered again; a synergy could be formed with Toulouse; Bartesaghi is attracting interest from England.

🔍 Longer Reads

Our longer reads from over the past week include a look at the opportunity that Modric’s injury provides for two summer signings, why six Sassuolo talents should be on Milan’s radar, a reflection on Maignan’s leadership status after what happened at the Mapei Stadium, plus the tactical analysis from that game and the five talking points.