As their Serie A rivals attempt to turn back time, champions Milan are looking to the future.
Romelu Lukaku, Inter s 2020-21 Scudetto hero, and Paul Pogba, the winner of four straight championships at Juventus, have returned to their former clubs following ultimately unsuccessful Premier League stints.
Of course, this is a move that worked for Milan last season, as Zlatan Ibrahimovic had played for three different clubs in three different countries between featuring in the Rossoneri s two most recent title-winning campaigns.
Ibrahimovic, soon to turn 41, has signed up for another season, but there is a young, exciting core to the Milan team who secured that latest title and will now bid to defend it.
Young stars repay Pioli s faith
Milan had the …
Zinedine Zidane vowed he would not quit as Real Madrid head coach after a shattering defeat to Shakhtar Donetsk left their Champions League campaign in chaos.
Madrid slumped to third place in Group B after a 2-0 defeat to Shakhtar – the Ukrainian side that also beat the LaLiga champions in the Spanish capital in October.
Amid deteriorating domestic form, the Champions League had been the salvation for Madrid in November, as they beat Inter home and away.
But now pressure will mount on Zidane, the club legend who was arguably the ultimate Galactico before coaching the team to three consecutive Champions League titles from 2016 to 2018.
Madrid dearly needed a positive result in Kiev, where Donetsk play their home games, but goals from substitutes Dentinho…