UNDER 17s, FINISHING THE YEAR ON A HIGH

A lacklustre start and a bright end to the year. This is the best way to sum up the Under 17 side’s league season so far. The Rossoneri Youth Team - after encountering some initial difficulties in adapting - refused to see their season fizzle out and, with hard work and patience, managed to turn it round, moving to the top of the table.

The turning point for Coach Lantignotti's boys came with the victory in the Derby in the seventh game of the season. The Rossoneri came into the encounter with their local rivals off the back of the loss at Hellas Verona, 8 points off the top of the table. The challenge against the Nerazzurri is always a tricky one, and it started badly: two goals after 26 minutes. But the Rossoneri managed to fight back and hit four goals past Inter.

After the Derby came 6 victories in 7 matches, and a draw at Como (3-3), with as many as 29 goals scored and only 8 conceded. They put in some top class performances, which dragged the boys second place in the table, level with Hellas Verona on 32 points. In addition to all this, the 46 total goals - over the course of the 14 league matches - is the second best record in the league.

They’re now waiting to return to the pitch - with a game in mid-January against Cittadella at the PUMA House of Football. Coach Lantignotti also describes himself as satisfied with the first half of the season: "We started with some initial difficulties, but since then there has been a continuous growth especially in the quality of play and consequently also the results. We arrive at the halfway mark with great satisfaction and aware that we have great room for improvement in the coming year."

Match KITS, clothing, accessories, gift ideas and much more: visit the AC Milan online Store!