Why Is It so Difficult for AC Milan to Find Stability?

AC Milan are enduring one of the darkest periods in the club’s history. It’s certainly the poorest stretch they’ve endured since Silvio Berlusconi bought the team in 1986.

The Rossoneri have missed out on European competition each of the last two seasons, finishing eighth in 2013-14 and an embarrassing 10th a year ago. The last time they did play on the continent, they scraped through the group stage of the UEFA Champions League before getting wiped out in the round of 16 by Atletico Madrid in 2014.

The root cause of the team’s problems can be traced directly to the lack of stability the team has endured since the 2014 dismissal of then-coach Massimiliano Allegri.  Since Allegri’s sacking, the team has had four managers over two-and-a-half seasons—and if current coach Cristian Brocchi doesn’t prove his worth in his last few games, it will soon be five in three.

That instability isn’t just limited to the manager’s office.  The playing staff has seen a lot of turnover over the last few years—along with some unwelcome meddling from the club’s top echelons.

In the end, it all comes down to Berlusconi.

There’s no question the media mogul and former prime minister of Italy pulled the club from their absolute worst. They had been relegated twice since 1980, the first time as punishment for the 1980 Totonero betting scandal and were on the verge of bankruptcy when he stepped in.

His investment made the club great again. He signed the likes of Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard and Marco van Basten. In his first six years at the helm, he broke the world transfer record three times. The team has won eight of its 18 league titles and five of its seven European Cups under his stewardship.

But even in all that success, there has been an uneven streak in Berlusconi’s management of the team. After a decade with just two coaches, Arrigo Sacchi and Fabio Capello, Berlusconi went through a five …

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