Marco van Basten warns a Milan owned by Chinese investors “does not sit well with me”, and discusses the state of calcio.
The former striker scored 125 goals in 201 games for the Rossoneri, before being forced into retirement after two years out with an ankle injury.
With the Diavolo having been out of Europe for several years, the Dutchman was asked what has gone wrong by Gazzetta dello Sport.
“You know what makes me more sad?” Van Basten asked.
Marco van Basten warns a Milan owned by Chinese investors “does not sit well with me”, and discusses the state of calcio.
The former striker scored 125 goals in 201 games for the Rossoneri, before being forced into retirement after two years out with an ankle injury.
With the Diavolo having been out of Europe for several years, the Dutchman was asked what has gone wrong by Gazzetta dello Sport.
“You know what makes me more sad?” Van Basten asked.
“Seeing San Siro half empty. That’s something that was inconceivable in my day. It was bedlam against Napoli, but also if we were playing Empoli.
“And things are no better in the other Italian stadiums, almost all of them are stuck in the ‘90s. Milan are missing big players, but also a modern stadium.
“Juventus have champions in their squad and a full stadium. The club invested in the future and now they’re reaping the rewards.
“They can afford to pay €90m for [Gonzalo] Higuain, and focus on a talent like [Paulo] Dybala.
“There’s something I don’t understand though: Milan as a city and a region is potentially better than Turin, and the Piedmont region.
“That’s both in terms of the population and economics. Yet they’re limping in football. Milan needs to stay ahead, but its in the wake of Rome, Naples and other major cities.”
Couldn’t Chinese money put the two Milan clubs back on top?
“I can’t think of Inter and Milan being Chinese owned, two such historic clubs must remain Italian. It’s not just about history, about [Silvio] Berlusconi and [Massimo] Moratti.
“It’s also about passion, which is priceless. No, a Chinese Milan doesn’t sit well with me.”
In Van Basten’s time, Serie A was the most glamorous League in the world, but it’s now ranked fourth in the UEFA coefficients.
“You had the richest and most beautiful League,” the 52-year-old recalled.
“You weren’t able to press your advantage, between scandals, inadequate facilities and arguments, now you’re behind.
“The mistake? Thinking about money too much, you do everything for television viewers and nothing for fans.
“That’s just thinking about today and forgetting about tomorrow, it’s no surprise if you’re behind.”
Van Basten was also asked about Milan’s duels with Diego Maradona’s Napoli in the late 80s and early 90s.
“What battles we had with Maradona. As well as Diego, there was Careca, [Bruno] Giordano, [Ciro] Ferrara…
“We had a lot of champions too though, and maybe we were more of a team.”