ARRIGO
SACCHI
MILAN
1987 - 1991
Arrigo Sacchi is a man who broke stereotypes about Italian Football and brought a brand of football that was alien to the peninsula. He was the conductor of a well drilled orchestra during his first stint at AC Milan. Prior to arrival, the man was in the wilderness of Serie C managing Parma. Silvio Berlusconi chose him after he had masterminded Milan’s downfall in the cup. Yes, that is indeed Berlusconi, the former bunga-bunga Prime Minister, now old age carer. In 1987 he attracted mockery over the decision to appoint Sacchi only this time his decision was to be vindicated.
To say the man’s training methods were odd would be an understatement. He managed to get grown men to stand around in a field with him conjuring up imaginary situations as they stood on the field. The team moved in unison discussing how they would react during the game. This element of intensity and attention to detail quickly translated to results on the pitch. His first game in charge of Milan was against Fiorentina. This was during the time when Baggio was coming into prominence; he scored the winner condemning Sacchi to a defeat in his first game as manager of Milan. Milan recovered; in fact they did more than recover they went on to win the league title in his first season.