Van Basten ‘hurt’ by Milan plight

By Football Italia staff

Marco van Basten admits he is ‘hurt’ by Milan’s recent plight but is consoled by the fact Juventus ‘only win in Italy’ unlike his Rossoneri side.

Milan’s exclusion from the Europa League is expected to be confirmed on Wednesday – a far cry from Van Basten’s team who won three Scudetti and two European Cups between 1987 and 1995.

“With respect to my time there, things have changed a lot at Milan and I’m sorry to see that,” the former Netherlands striker told Gazzetta dello Sport.

“My Milan was Italian, with Silvio Berlusconi, the three of us from Netherlands and a very good squad.

“Now the owner is Chinese, I don’t even know who he is, and the team isn’t that of 30 years ago.

“Unfortunately, the level has dropped a lot and there’s the risk of being out of European competitions.

“It hurts me to think that Milan and Inter were the Real [Madrid] and Atletico of today.

“Milan like Madrid? Yes, we we were dominant and won the Champions League, plus we did nice things in the UEFA Cup.

“Now we’re the metaphor of the crisis in Italian football. Why? Others have more money and are better organised, simple.

“Since my time in Italy, many things have happened and they haven’t been positive. Juventus are like my Milan: organised, strong and constantly growing, they’re investing and they remain at a high level.

“However, there’s a difference and it isn’t a small one: Milan dominated Europe and the world, and that role belongs to Real Madrid now.

“Juventus are part of the elite, but they only win in Italy.”

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