In the 2016-2017 season, the AC Milan first team could rely on the performances of 25 players, 4 more than the previous season and 8 coming through the Club’s youth academy. The captain’s armband was retained by Riccardo Montolivo until he got injured (ACL injury) during the Italian national team match against Spain on 6th October 2016. Ignazio Abate was confirmed as vice-captain but due to an injury in his left eye occurred in late February, the armband was assigned from time to time to the player with the greatest number of caps with the red and black jersey.

The head coach for the 2016/2017 season with a two-year contract was Vincenzo Montella who then renewed his contract on 30th May 2017. Montella’s starting line-up stood out for the presence of young Italian talents.                            

The most important achievement of the season was the Supercoppa Italiana win in Doha on December 23. AC Milan, TIM Cup finalist in the 2015-2016 season, defeated the 2015-2016 League title-winning Juventus FC at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium. The Rossoneri pulled off a 5-4 shootout victory over the Bianconeri after the 1-1 draw reached in the regular and extra time with goals by Chiellini and Bonaventura. The decisive play was a fine save by Gianluigi Donnarumma on Dybala’s penalty, a technical gesture that allowed the then seventeen-year-old player to show off his talent on the international scene.

AC Milan ended the first leg in third place with 39 points, after playing the rescheduled match against Bologna which had been postponed due to the Supercoppa commitment.

The change of ownership took place in April. Silvio Berlusconi left Milan after 31 years and the 99.93% stake was taken over by Yonghong Li. The closing was on April 13 shortly before 2pm.

Saturday, April 15, 2017 will go down in history as the first derby under the Chinese management. At San Siro in addition to President Yonghong Li, also the new CEO Marco Fassone and the head of the technical department Massimiliano Mirabelli are seen for the first time. It is the beginning of a period of great transformation that will also involve the First Team. The players, meanwhile, managed to end the championship in sixth place with 63 points which thrusted the club back onto the European stage after three years. This season, AC Milan was also the team with the lowest average age of all Serie A with 25.2 years.

From May 30, the new owners focuses on the transfer market which ushers in the so-called "formal things" era.

The first team trains at the Milanello training ground in Carnago, in the province of Varese. The training programme includes both gym sessions and technical/tactical sessions on the pitch, as well as video sittings where the team gets ready for next matches by analysing the opponents’ moves. 

Throughout the season, the First Team, together with the coaching, medical and other staff, also takes part in several social initiatives.

On May 26, 2017, in particular, coach Montella and the players met Briantea84, the team "adopted" by AC Milan that won the 1st Fourth Category Championship dedicated to people with cognitive and relational disabilities, promoted by the FIGC and the Lega Calcio Serie A, Serie B and Lega Pro. The champions, who played all the matches wearing red and black jerseys, had the chance to visit Milanello, attend a training session, meet their "colleagues" and celebrate with them the win on the pitch [picture]. The Briantea84 team, together with the AC Ossona Special team, was a guest at San Siro on 19 February 2017 on the occasion of the match Milan v. Fiorentina: before the game they were taken on a tour around the stadium, while during the break, they got on the pitch to greet the public.

In keeping with the tradition, the team also visited paediatric wards at local hospitals and the Milanello sports center opened its door to disadvantaged people and let them meet the players.  Besides their work on the pitch, the players and the coach also attend meetings with sponsors.

Season 2016/2017

Health and Antidoping