Juventus 2018-19: The AC Milan team last to rule before the Bianconeri's dominance

Juventus has claimed its eighth straight Serie A title but in 2010-11 it finished seventh - 24 points behind AC Milan.

Published : Apr 21, 2019 01:10 IST

It may seem like a distant era but there was a time when Juventus did  not  win Serie A.

Massimiliano Allegri has continued the Turin dynasty started by Antonio Conte but long before he moved to Allianz Stadium, he was the mastermind behind the last team other than Juve to claim the Scudetto.

With Rafael Benitez enduring a stuttering start to his time at Inter, which had won the treble the previous season, and Juve still reeling following the Calciopoli scandal, the stage was set for AC Milan.

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With a host of star names and a mixture of experience and youth, the Rossoneri ran out worthy winners, sealing the title with a 1-0 win over Brescia on April 23, 2011.

So which was the last team to stop Juventus from winning Serie A? We takes a look at the XI...
 

GOALKEEPER

Christian Abbiati - With Dida having departed San Siro after a 10-year spell in the summer of 2010, Abbiati emerged from being his long-time deputy to become the number one.

The Italian, who won four caps for his country, spent a total of 18 years at the club and retired in 2016.

 

RIGHT-BACK

Ignazio Abate - A Milan academy graduate who was brought back to San Siro in 2009 after a series of loan spells and stints at Empoli and Torino. Abate was then an exciting prospect, whose form for the title winner helped him into the Italy team. He is still at the club and has recently featured as a makeshift centre-back.

READ| Ronaldo confirms Juventus stay after Serie A success

CENTRE-BACKS



Alessandro Nesta and Thiago Silva - The bedrock of the team, the centre-back pairing combined the guile and experience of Nesta and the dynamism of Thiago Silva, then a very highly regarded centre-back. Nesta, who was 35 at the end of the season, had seen the club's glory days of the mid-00s under Carlo Ancelotti, winning two Champions Leagues. He retired as a Milan player in 2012.

Thiago Silva, meanwhile, was enjoying his second season in Italy after moving from his homeland in Brazil. He also left the club in 2012, signing for Paris Saint-Germain, where he remains today.

LEFT-BACK

Luca Antonini - Another player who had come through the Milan academy and come back after making the grade elsewhere. Antonini's best spell at the club came under Allegri, and he was a regular throughout the Serie A-winning season, before departing in 2013. He retired three years later.

READ| Juventus 2018-19: Ronaldo's goals key to eighth successive Scudetto

CENTRAL MIDFIELD

Mark van Bommel, Andrea Pirlo, Gennaro Gattuso, Clarence Seedorf, Kevin-Prince Boateng - Milan had an embarrassment of riches in central midfield. Andrea Pirlo was a regular prior to the arrival of Mark van Bommel from Bayern Munich in January 2011 and the Dutchman became a regular fixture for the remainder of the season.

 

Gennaro Gattuso was another survivor of the club's highly successful period in the mid-00s. The Italian midfielder had been at San Siro since 1999 and this was the last of his two Serie A titles. He remained at the club for one more season, but this was his last year as a regular. He now coaches Milan.

Another veteran in the centre of the park, Seedorf was approaching a decade of service at San Siro during the title-winning season. Like his fellow midfielder Gattuso, he later coached the first team, during a brief and unsuccessful spell in 2014.

Kevin-Prince Boateng provided the dynamism in midfield and was the crucial link to the attack. Then just 24, the Ghana international won Serie A in his first year at the club but his time in Italy was later blighted by racist abuse. Boateng is now on loan with Barcelona.

STRIKERS

Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Robinho - After an unhappy year at Barcelona, this was the last of Ibrahimovic's extraordinary eight straight titles in three different countries. He and Robinho were Milan's joint top scorers in Serie A with 14 goals, along with Alexandre Pato. Ibrahimovic went to PSG the following summer, along with Thiago Silva. Robinho scored the goal that eventually sealed the title against Brescia.

SUBSTITUTES

Pirlo was a bit-part player during his last season at Milan. He moved to Juventus that summer and was part of Conte's highly successful Bianconeri side. He, Mathieu Flamini and club captain Massimo Ambrosini were reinforcements in the centre of midfield. Ronaldinho began the season at the club but returned to Brazil to play for Flamengo in January. Antonio Cassano provided four goals. Daniele Bonera and Gianluca Zambrotta were the able defensive replacements.

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