Frontline Football Blog

Ronaldinho was considered to be past his prime by pundits and supporters alike when he arrived in the Italian Peninsula in the season of 2008/2009. The mediocre debut season did nothing to prove them wrong. On the contrary, it confirmed everything they had expected of the former Brazilian wonder who no longer displayed dazzling performances or smiles.

The current campaign started off much in much the same fashion-but that was all to change. As Coach Leonardo figured out how to get the best out of the players at his disposal, the team started to thrive.

But there was one player in particular-Ronaldinho.

The Brazilian has undergone a renaissance under the guidance of fellow countryman Leonardo and has emerged as one of the team's protagonists this season.

In his first press conference as AC Milan tactician, rookie coach Leonardo said that he wanted to see a Rossoneri that in its coming season would put the emphasis on playing entertaining, offensive-minded football.

We all know what happened from there.

The circumstances were anything but ideal. The close to zero activity in the player mercato combined with the lack of real training resulted in a disastrous preseason. On top of that, Leonardo missed the key components to his preferred 4-3-3 system-high quality fullbacks.

The bright start against Siena on the opening matchday was followed by the 4-0 onslaught at the hands of their city rivals, Inter Milan. As the Diavolo followed up with more mediocre performances and goalless stalemates against teams such as newcomers Livorno and Bari, it naturally resulted in the papers calling Leonardo's future into question.

Around midnight the re-elected Real Madrid president Florentino Perez did what many thought was impossible.

He finalized the €65 million switch which brought Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite, or Kaká as he is more commonly known, to Real Madrid by making him the second most expensive player in history.

Back in January AC Milan was ready to sell their star player to Manchester City who tabled an astronomical bid of around the regions of €100 million. The club left the final decision down to Kaká, who later stated that he hadn't even given the offer 30 seconds before turning it down.

The reason behind Milan's lack of pressure for the move to go through was in some sense respect for the player. No offense to Manchester City, but they still have a long way to go before they'll be able to fight with the Premier League top four. Instead, whispers of a summer move to Real Madrid began flourishing in the media.

During the January transfer window Kaká also pledged his love for the club and has continued to do so ever since. Just last Monday he gave an interview on the plane on his way to Brazil where he once again said he wants to continue winning titles with Milan.

The past season was an end of an era in many ways for AC Milan.

Club legend and icon Paolo Maldini played his last game for the Rossoneri after spending a quarter of a century with the team-captaining the side for more than a decade along the way.

Coach Carlo Ancelotti left the bench after eight years in the Italian fashion capital and headed for London to take charge of the Blues.

Star player Ricardo Kaká was recently sold to Spanish titans Real Madrid in order to balance the sheets.

Next season will bring with it a new captain in Massimo Ambrosini, a new coach in former Milan midfielder Leonardo and most likely a handful of new additions from the summer's mercato.

Yoann Gourcuff's sensational loan spell at Bordeaux this current season has seen the youngster blossom into one of the game's brightest prospects. The 22-year-old Frenchman has been compared to his legendary countryman Zinedine Zidane on numerous occasions and earned the nickname "Petit Zizou".

After spending a miserable season in Milan where he was never really given the chance or the confidence by coach Carlo Ancelotti-who even towards the end of last season went on to bad-mouth the youngster in the press-things would soon change for the better.

Girondins de Bordeaux manager Laurent Blanc handpicked the attacking midfielder to help the club in their quest to unsettle Olympique Lyonnais after seven years on the French summit. After the switch to the French outfit things have turned rather quickly for the immensely talented player. Bordeaux are currently topping the French league with three points separating them from the chasing pack.

As the season is drawing to a close it is clear to see that Blanc made an excellent choice seeing it since young Frenchman has excelled in the No. 10 role and has been simply outstanding as a freekick taker as well as a goalscorer.

In sport the term "legend" is thrown around far too often.

Every other season a new "legend" appears only to disappear off the radar the following year. Surely to become a recognised "legend" an athlete should be at the top of their respective game for several years.

When I think of football, several players fit this category. However some stand out all the more because they have dedicated their time to one club and continue to play at the highest level year in and year out.

I think of Ryan Giggs at Manchester United who was their best player last night against Derby County in the FA Cup. Another is Raul of Real Madrid, who has recently become the club's all-time top goalscorer.

It is on the very rare occasions one gets to see a football player choose heart, love and loyalty over the temptation of money.

In a world where the financial aspects have come to run every part of the game, it is truly touching to see that Ricardo Kaká decided against a move to Manchester City and its truckloads of money to remain where he truly belongs-AC Milan.

The move, should it have gone through, was repeatedly likened to the death of football. While record-breaking transfer fees are nothing new, the astronomical bid for the Brazilian playmaker was certainly out of the ordinary, as were his words after his rejection of the bid had been officially confirmed.

"Not even for thirty seconds did I think about leaving," he stated on Milan Channel. "I went with my heart, as it was never going to be an economic choice for me."
"At Milan there are wonderful people, and just to confirm, I have never, and will never, ask for an increase in my wages at this club."

As the Kaká saga keeps unfolding it is getting more and more likened to the death of football.

A bid so great it's hard to grasp the numbers. Football equals money and have done so for longer than I can remember and it's incredibly sad to see a player who has remained loyal to his team for the past five years to almost be forced to part ways with his beloved club.

After AC Milan reportedly rejecting Manchester City's initial bid of €100m for Brazilian playmaker Ricardo Kaká the club has decided to start negotiations-that according to the latest reports looks to be coming to a close. The club would get a staggering €112 million while the player himself is set to land €15 million per season after taxes.

Although Kaká hardly seems to be interested in the move to Eastlands where Manchester City currently are fighting dangerously close to the relegation zone - despite the amount of money on the table-the player whom this concerns may very well be forced to leave simply due to the enormousness of the bid

Alexandre Pato has become one of Serie A's most prominent players during the last calendar year. The young Brazilian has just completed his first year at AC Milan and with his lightning speed, unique technical skills, great finishing and outstanding reading of the game; the forward has done nothing to diminish his €22 million price tag.

Alexandre Pato, whose real name is Alexandre Rodrigues da Silva received his shirt name due to his hometown being Pato Branco-which in both Spanish and Portuguese means "duck."

Pato started playing futsal at the early age of four and become known in the Parana region due to his unique skills. At the age of seven the young talent switched to football and went off to play for Gremiô Industrial Pato Branquese-a sister club to Gremiô.

However, things haven't always been easy for "The Duck." In 2000, young Pato at a mere 10 years of age was brought to the doctors with a broken arm. The doctor found something else too-a tumor that would have been cancerous had it not been removed within two months.

Alexandre Pato and Mirko Vucinic each bagged a brace as Roma came back to tie AC Milan at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome Sunday night. David Beckham was surprisingly handed a starting shirt on his much anticipated Serie A debut while Roma talisman Francesco Totti watched his team mates from the stands.

The game took off on a somewhat slow note as both team gathered possession while seizing each other up. The home side's John Arne Riise had the first chance on goal when his low drive from outside the penalty box was smothered by Abbiati in the Milan goal. Minutes later Clarence Seedorf saw his long range effort go high over the crossbar.

Twenty minutes into the game, Roma were taking up more possession as Milan's grip on the match slowly loosened. Vucinic received Riise's deep cross from the left and turned away both Maldini and Jankulovski before he put Roma one up to the approval of the Giallorossi fans.

Milan immediately started to press forward in their search for an equalizer and enjoyed large spells of possessions, but with the opposing team's excellent defense skills, the Rossoneri players had problems leaving their half of the pitch. Neither of the teams managed to create anything of significance during the remainder of an otherwise subtle first half.