AC Milan End of Season Awards

Player of the Season

Carlos Bacca

Carlos Bacca had a superb season as he tallied 18 Serie A goals in 38 games despite receiving little service from his teammates.  The Colombian saved Milan's bacon on more than one occasion and was their only consistent goalscorer throughout the season.  Bacca certainly justified his €30 million price tag in his debut season with the Rossoneri

Gianluigi Donnarumma

Gianluigi Donnarumma burst onto the scene in October when Diego Lopez got injured, and the teenage keeper never relinquished the net for the remainder of the season.  Donnarumma was a phenomenon for Milan as his displays in goal where simply incredible; he must have saved Milan 5-7 points over the course of the term.  His maturity, reflexes, and agility were exceptional, as Donnarumma's emergence was most definitely the brightest of lights in an otherwise dark season for the Rossoneri.

Giacomo Bonaventura

Giacomo Bonaventura began right where he left off last season as he turned in another excellent campaign.  The Italian midfielder was Mr. Everything for Milan, playing multiple positions, scoring goals, taking set pieces and providing assists for a Milan team that depended on him to spark their offence.   Perhaps the greatest accolade that could be heaped on Bonaventura is that whenever he was absent, it was extremely noticeable as the team struggled to mightily.

Winner: Giacomo Bonaventura

A consistent, versatile, and quality player who carried Milan on nights when they didn't have it and led the charge on nights when they did.

Best Signing

Juraj Kucka

The groans and gripes heard in August when Milan signed Kucka from Genoa have all gone away thanks to the performances the Slovenian turned in during his debut season.  Kucka's work rate and drive were impressive, as he added a new dimension to Milan's midfield.  Kucka also showed himself to be a big game player, as some of his best performances came against Inter and Juventus.

Carlos Bacca

Carlos Bacca's 18 goals were indispensable for the Rossoneri, and it's incredibly worrying to consider where Milan would be without the Colombian.  Mario Balotelli and Luiz Adriano had disappointing campaigns, while M'Baye Niang and Jeremy Menez struggled with injury throughout the season; Bacca's 18 goal haul was impressive as it was necessary.

Alessio Romagnoli

There were heavy expectations on Romagnoli after he arrived from Roma for a whopping €25 million after a long and drawn out transfer saga.  The young Italian met most of those lofty expecations and asserted himself as the first centreback on the depth chart, backing it up with a solid and consistent campaign.  Romagnoli definitely asserted himself as a key piece of Milan's future, while establishing himself as an important part of their present.

Winner: Carlos Bacca

18 goals in 38 games.  That is all.

Game of the Season

January 17, 2-0 win vs Fiorentina

Going into the game against Fiorentina there was loads of pressure on Milan.  Milan were limping into the second half of the season after a rough start to the campaign, and in their way stood high flying Fiorentina.  Instead of rolling over, Milan showed real heart, as goals from Carlos Bacca and Kevin Prince Boateng in the 4th and 88th minute gave Milan the 2-0 victory.  After the Fiorentina match, Milan's next loss came 7 games later against Sassuolo on March 6.

January 31, 3-0 win vs Inter

There was considerable hype surrounding the derby Della Madonnina on January 31st.  Both teams were hovering around the top 5 spots and a win for either side would've been a huge boost in the race for a Champions League spot.  Milan were looking for revenge after their 1-0 loss in the first fixture of the year, a game in which they outplayed Inter but still came away with 0 points.  Well, safe to say Milan got their revenge with a 3-0 thrashing of their archrivals.  Alex's headed goal opened the scoring in the 35th minute, and 2 strikes from Bacca and Niang back to back in the 73rd and 77th minute sealed the deal as Milan romped to a 3-0 victory

May 21,1-0 loss to Juventus

Going into the Coppa Italia final Milan were not given much of a chance against Juventus.  The two sides' seasons were polar opposites and a Juventus victory was seen as a foregone conclusion.  Instead, Milan took the game to the champions and dominated for 90 minutes but could not break through with a goal.  Milan's poor finishing cost them in extra time as an Alvaro Morata strike in the 110th minute won the cup for Juventus.  Despite resulting in a loss, Milan held almost 60% of the possession and earned 6 corners on Juventus; certainly an impressive if not successful performance.

Winner: January 31, 3-0 win against Inter

Routing your biggest rival doesn't happen too often, undoubtedly this was the high point of Milan's season.

Most Pleasant Surprise

Alex

Coming off of a poor debut season, expectations of the veteran Brazilian were low to start the year.  However, as the season progressed Alex proved to be a solid and steadying presence in the heart of Milan's defence as he worked fairly well while partnering Alessio Romagnoli.  In addition he provided a memorable goal against Inter as he rose to meet an inswinging corner and rifled it in the net to Milan a 1-0 lead in a hotly contested derby.

Juraj Kucka

Kucka was a solid and consistent performer all season, and significantly surpassed the expectations placed on him after his transfer from Genoa.  Originally viewed as bench depth, Kucka played his way into the starting eleven and quickly established himself as a regular.

Gianluigi Donnarumma

Donnarumma began the season a distant third on the goalkeeping depth chart, behind Diego Lopez and Christian Abbiati.  But when he was given the chance to start, Donnarumma forced Milan to make him the number one.  The teenage keeper excelled as the Rossoneri's number one and refused to give the net back, even when Diego Lopez had recovered.  Having your third string 16 year old keeper grab the net and play like a star is a pretty pleasant surprise when it's all said and done.

Winner: Gianluigi Donnarumma

Is this even a debate? This category is tailor made for him, Donanrumma's emergence was a total surprise, nobody saw this coming.