AC Milan: Gennaro Gattuso’s side ‘reborn’ going into Arsenal game

When the draw for the last 16 of the Europa League was made, AC Milan sporting director and former Sunderland scout Massimiliano Mirabelli said: “I feel sorry for Arsenal.”

His tongue was firmly in cheek but the display of the braggadocio – of the sort you used to associate with this club on big European nights – offered a strong indication of how confident the mood is around Milan at the moment.

In many respects, that’s exactly how it should be. Milan spent 220m euros (£201.5m) last summer, buying an entire new team for the price of one Neymar, in an effort to lift this fallen giant back to its feet.

The papers in Italy hyped Milan up as title contenders and installed them among the favourites for the Europa League. By the end of 2017, though, it looked like it had all gone up in smoke.

Vincenzo Montella was sacked in late November. Champions League qualification, essential to mysterious new owner Li Yonghong’s development scheme, seemed beyond Milan. Meanwhile investigations by the New York Times and Corriere della Sera raised serious questions about the structuring of the takeover, the sustainability of the project and whether Li is as wealthy as he claims to be.

Milan are currently subject to “monitoring” by Uefa over Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations, given their outlay on players and their outstanding debts. In December, the governing body, unconvinced by the club’s business plan, rejected their application for a voluntary agreement and are currently deliberating which FFP sanctions to impose next season.

Given this backdrop, then, why is Mirabelli so bullish? Enter Gennaro ‘Rino’ Gattuso.