AC MILAN'S FLYING START TO THE SEASON

The defeat against Napoli brought manager Stefano Pioli's AC Milan's nine-month unbeaten streak in the league to a crushing end, but it will not take the gloss off an encouraging start to the season. Milan had registered four wins against Udinese, Bologna, Inter and Sampdoria and two stalemates at Atalanta and Sassuolo before they locked horns with Napoli. And in those fixtures, there were lots of positives to take for Milan's gaffer. 

First and foremost, the capacity to come from behind as happened in the games against high-flying Udinese, in the derby and away at Atalanta. Added to that, there is Milan's fighting spirit which is reflected in the hunger for more glory after the memorable season that culminated in the Scudetto win. While Milan's forward line is delivering the goods, having so far found the back of the net in six of the opening seven league outings and currently trailing only Napoli and Udinese, who have 15 goals under their belts. And if we take the Champions League campaign into account, nine different players already got on the scoresheet.

That said, AC Milan's defensive department has room for improvement as thus far Pioli's men have only kept two clean sheets, against Bologna and Sassuolo. Yet many of the goals Milan shipped came from dead balls and is down to a consistent squad rotation. The seven leading Serie A sides are within five points of each other and in the build-up to the congested schedule list between October and mid-November this is encouraging.

AC Milan made a positive start to their Champions League campaign with four points from the first two fixtures, including a draw at Salzburg followed by a home win over Dinamo Zagreb. This enabled last season's league champions to top the group E standings ahead of the back-to-back showdowns with Chelsea, who are currently rooted to the foot of the table.

Qualifying for the Round of 16 in the Champions League is within AC Milan's reach. But with three European games to prepare for in October (including the away game in Zagreb against Dinamo), the Rossoneri have to be at the top of their game to keep staying protagonists both domestically and in Europe.

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