1977–78 AC Milan season

Milan Associazione Calcio
1977–78 season
President	Felice Colombo
Manager	Nils Liedholm
Stadium	San Siro
Serie A	4º
Coppa Italia	Second round
Cup Winners' Cup	Round of 32
Top goalscorer	League: Aldo Maldera (8); All: Aldo Maldera (8)
Average home league attendance	48,907
Home colours	Away colours
	← 1976–77 1978–79 →

During the 1977–1978 season Milan Associazione Calcio competed in Serie A, Coppa Italia and Cup Winners' Cup.

Summary

Entrepreneur Felice Colombo became president of the club before the end of the previous season, while Nils Liedholm was signed as manager, after having been already a Milan player from 1949 to 1961 and coach from 1963 to 1966. Notable purchases include Ruben Buriani and Roberto Antonelli.

In the league, Milan started with ten consecutive games without defeats (four draws and six wins) which brought them to the first place in the standings. The subsequent series of three defeats and two draws meant that the Rossoneri ended the first half of the season in fourth place with 18 points, together with Inter and Perugia. In the second half of the season, Milan suffered only two defeats against Atalanta and Lazio, in both cases at San Siro, and finished the championship in fourth position with 37 points, a placement that allowed the club to qualify to the 1978-79 UEFA Cup. During the tournament, on 23 April 1978 in Verona, Franco Baresi made his debut with Milan. He would become a legend of the club in the following two decades.^[2]

In the Cup Winners' Cup, Milan was eliminated in the round of 32 by the Spanish side Betis Seville who won 2-0 in Spain and lost the second leg 2-1 in Milan.

The season ended with the Coppa Italia, a competition that Milan, as holders of the trophy, started from the second round. Milan closed group B, which also included Taranto, Juventus and Napoli, in first place, on equal points with the latter; Napoli qualified for the final thanks to a better goal difference against Milan (+8 against +6).

Squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	GK	ITA	Enrico Albertosi
—	GK	ITA	Antonio Rigamonti
—	DF	ITA	Aldo Bet
—	DF	ITA	Franco Baresi
—	DF	ITA	Simone Boldini
—	DF	ITA	Fulvio Collovati
—	DF	ITA	Maurizio Turone
—	DF	ITA	Giuseppe Sabadini
—	DF	ITA	Aldo Maldera
—	MF	ITA	Fabio Capello
—	MF	ITA	Giorgio Biasiolo
—	MF	ITA	Ruben Buriani


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	MF	ITA	Gianni Rivera (Captain)
—	MF	ITA	Gabriello Carotti
—	MF	ITA	Giorgio Morini
—	FW	ITA	Giorgio Braglia
—	FW	ITA	Roberto Antonelli
—	FW	ITA	Alberto Bigon (vice-captain)
—	FW	ITA	Egidio Calloni
—	FW	ITA	Luciano Gaudino
—	FW	ITA	Giovanni Sartori
—	FW	ITA	Ugo Tosetto
—	FW	ITA	Sergio Valentinuzzi
—	FW	ITA	Francesco Vincenzi

Transfers

In
Pos.	Name	from	Type
DF	Franco Fasoli	Monza	loan end
MF	Ruben Buriani	Monza
FW	Roberto Antonelli	Monza
FW	Luciano Gaudino	Varese	loan end
FW	Ugo Tosetto	Monza
FW	Giovanni Sartori	Bolzano	loan end

Out
Pos.	Name	To	Type
DF	Angelo Anquilletti	Monza
DF	Franco Fasoli	Bari
MF	Duino Gorin	Monza
MF	Giovanni Lorini	Lanerossi
FW	Giovanni Sartori	Bolzano	loan
FW	Massimo Silva	Monza
FW	Giorgio Tomba	Pro Patria
FW	Francesco Vincenzi	Monza
MF	Giorgio Biasiolo	Lecce
FW	Giorgio Braglia	Foggia

Competitions

Serie A

League table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
2	Vicenza	30	14	11	5	50	34	+16	39	Qualification to UEFA Cup
3	Torino	30	14	11	5	36	23	+13	39
4	Milan	30	12	13	5	38	25	+13	37
5	Internazionale	30	13	10	7	35	24	+11	36	Qualification to Cup Winners' Cup
6	Napoli	30	8	14	8	35	31	+4	30	Qualification to UEFA Cup

Source: Panini

Matches

11 September 1977 1	Fiorentina	1-1	Milan	Firenze
	Rossinelli 53'	Report	89' Calloni	Stadium: Stadio Comunale Attendance: 50,594 Referee: Ciulli

18 September 1977 2	Milan	2-2	Genoa	Milano
	Rivera 3' (pen.) Capello 41'	Report	12', 64' (pen.) Damiani	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 53,164 Referee: Gonella

25 September 1977 3	Juventus	1-1	Milan	Torino
	Gentile 2'	Report	48' Maldera	Stadium: Stadio Comunale Attendance: 59,078 Referee: Ciacci

2 October 1977 4	Milan	3-1	Lanerossi Vicenza	Milano
	Turone 2' Maldera 45', 50'	Report	59' (pen.) Rossi	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 42,313 Referee: Benedetti

23 October 1977 5	Roma	1-2	Milan	Roma
	Chinellato 4'	Report	18' Bigon 84' Capello	Stadium: Stadio Olimpico Attendance: 55,677 Referee: Bergamo

30 October 1977 6	Milan	2-0	Foggia	Milano
	Rivera 12' Maldera 63'	Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 48,346 Referee: Reggiani

6 November 1977 7	Inter	1-3	Milan	Milano
	Anastasi 77'	Report	4', 84' Buriani 51' (pen.) Rivera	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 78,683 Referee: Serafino

20 November 1977 8	Milan	1-0	Bologna	Milano
	Rivera 50' (pen.)	Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 50,789 Referee: Menicucci

27 November 1977 9	Pescara	0-2^[3]	Milan	Pescara
		Report		Stadium: Stadio Adriatico Attendance: 28,458 Referee: Gonella

11 December 1977 10	Milan	2-2	Perugia	Milano
	Maldera 38' Rivera 85' (pen.)	Report	13' Novellino 34' Speggiorin	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 54,956 Referee: Agnolin

18 December 1977 11	Torino	1-0	Milan	Torino
	Pulici 62'	Report		Stadium: Stadio Comunale Attendance: 51,616 Referee: Menegali

31 December 1977 12	Atalanta	1-1	Milan	Bergamo
	Bertuzzo 40'	Report	28' Rivera	Stadium: Stadio Comunale Attendance: 34,482 Referee: Menicucci

8 January 1978 13	Milan	1-1	Verona	Milano
	Turone 87'	Report	56' Mascetti	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 47,609 Referee: Reggiani

15 January 1978 14	Lazio	2-0	Milan	Roma
	Boccolini 61' Giordano 82'	Report		Stadium: Stadio Olimpico Attendance: 42,529 Referee: Gonella

22 January 1978 15	Milan	0-1	Napoli	Milano
		Report	52' (pen.) Savoldi	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 53,794 Referee: Serafino

29 January 1978 16	Milan	5-1	Fiorentina	Milano
	Maldera 49' Gaudino 54' Antonelli 77' (pen.) Collovati 88' Capello 90'	Report	70' Casarsa	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 28,702 Referee: Agnolin

5 February 1978 17	Genoa	1-1	Milan	Genova
	Pruzzo 71'	Report	16' (og) Onofri	Stadium: Stadio Luigi Ferraris Attendance: 50,851 Referee: Michelotti

12 February 1978 18	Milan	0-0	Juventus	Milano
		Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 78,847 Referee: Bergamo

19 February 1978 19	Lanerossi Vicenza	1-1	Milan	Vicenza
	Guidetti 42'	Report	9' Bigon	Stadium: Stadio Romeo Menti Attendance: 30,457 Referee: Gonella

26 February 1978 20	Milan	1-0	Roma	Milano
	Di Bartolomei 65' (og)	Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 33,914 Referee: Prati

5 March 1978 21	Foggia	1-2	Milan	Foggia
	Turone 18' (og)	Report	49' Calloni 78' Antonelli	Stadium: Stadio Pino Zaccheria Attendance: 20,983 Referee: Michelotti

12 March 1978 22	Milan	0-0	Inter	Milano
		Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 78,608 Referee: Menegali

19 March 1978 23	Bologna	0-0	Milan	Bologna
		Report		Stadium: Stadio Comunale Attendance: 43,628 Referee: Agnolin

26 March 1978 24	Milan	2-0	Pescara	Milano
	Gaudino 35' Maldera 70'	Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 32,279 Referee: Redini

2 April 1978 25	Perugia	0-1	Milan	Perugia
		Report	58' Maldera	Stadium: Stadio Renato Curi Attendance: 27,306 Referee: Lattanzi

9 April 1978 26	Milan	1-1	Torino	Milano
	Bigon 9'	Report	37' (pen.) Pulici	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 61,324 Referee: Menicucci

16 April 1978 27	Milan	0-1	Atalanta	Milano
		Report	83' Tavola	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 48,657 Referee: Ciacci

23 April 1978 28	Verona	1-2	Milan	Verona
	Bet 35' (og)	Report	48' Bigon 54' (pen.) Buriani	Stadium: Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi Attendance: 30,134 Referee: Panzino

30 April 1978 29	Milan	0-2^[4]	Lazio	Milano
		Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 33,445 Referee: Michelotti

7 May 1978 30	Napoli	1-1	Milan	Napoli
	Vinazzani 85'	Report	74' Bigon	Stadium: Stadio San Paolo Attendance: 63,269 Referee: Menicucci

Coppa Italia

Second round group B

4 May 1978 1	Taranto	1-1	Milan	Taranto
	Turini 39'		71' Valentinuzzi	Stadium: Stadio Salinella Attendance: 24,735 Referee: Lanese

17 May 1978 2	Juventus	0-3	Milan	Torino
			56' Calloni 72' Rivera 76' Sartori	Stadium: Stadio Comunale Attendance: 4,500 Referee: Ciulli

21 May 1978 3	Milan	1-1	Napoli	Verona
	Sartori 76'		27' Savoldi	Stadium: Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi^[5] Attendance: 7,249 Referee: Ciulli

24 May 1978 4	Milan	2-0	Taranto	Modena
	Sartori 1', 35'			Stadium: Stadio Alberto Braglia^[6] Attendance: 22,000 Referee: Colasanti

1 June 1978 5	Napoli	1-0	Milan	Napoli
	Savoldi 77'			Stadium: Stadio San Paolo Attendance: 22,582 Referee: Longhi

4 June 1978 6	Milan	4-2	Juventus	Milano
	Bigon 26', 67' Sartori 45' Buriani 59' (pen.)		73' Bozzi 80' Schincaglia	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 5,991 Referee: Reggiani

Cup Winners' Cup

Round of 32

14 September 1977 1	Betis	2-0	Milan	Siviglia
	García Soriano 13' Eulate 71'			Stadium: Stadio Benito Villamarín Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Kitabdjian

28 September 1977 2	Milan	2-1	Betis	Milano
	Tosetto 35' Capello 59'		62' López	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 58,767 Referee: Cebe

Statistics

Squad statistics

Competition^[7]	Points	Home						Away						Total						GD
Competition^[7]	Points	G	W	D	L	Gs	Ga	G	W	D	L	Gs	Ga	G	W	D	L	Gs	Ga	GD
1977-78 Serie A	37	15	6	6	3	20	12	15	6	7	2	18	13	30	12	13	5	38	25	+13
1977-78 Coppa Italia	–	3	2	1	0	7	3	3	1	1	1	4	2	6	3	2	1	11	5	+6
1977-78 Cup Winners' Cup	–	1	1	0	0	2	1	1	0	0	1	0	2	2	1	0	1	2	3	-1
Total	–	19	9	7	3	29	16	19	7	8	4	22	17	38	16	15	7	51	33	+18

Players statistics

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		Serie A		Coppa Italia		Cup Winners' Cup
No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
	DF	ITA	Franco Baresi	3	0	1	0	2	0	0	0
	DF	ITA	Aldo Bet	32	0	25	0	6	0	1	0
	GK	ITA	Enrico Albertosi	32	-27	30	-24	0	-0	2	-3
	DF	ITA	Giuseppe Sabadini	21	0	15	0	5	0	1	0
	GK	ITA	Antonio Rigamonti	7	-6	1	-1	6	-5	0	-0
	MF	ITA	Giorgio Biasiolo	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	MF	ITA	Ruben Buriani	33	4	26	3	5	1	2	0
	MF	ITA	Fabio Capello	35	4	28	3	5	0	2	1
	DF	ITA	Simone Boldini	13	0	6	0	6	0	1	0
	FW	ITA	Alberto Bigon	30	7	23	5	6	2	1	0
	DF	ITA	Fulvio Collovati	30	1	25	1	4	0	1	0
	MF	ITA	Gianni Rivera	36	7	30	6	5	1	1	0
	DF	ITA	Maurizio Turone	29	2	24	2	3	0	2	0
	FW	ITA	Giorgio Braglia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	MF	ITA	Gabriello Carotti	4	0	1	0	3	0	0	0
	MF	ITA	Giorgio Morini	33	0	26	0	5	0	2	0
	DF	ITA	Aldo Maldera	30	8	28	8	0	0	2	0
	FW	ITA	Roberto Antonelli	17	2	14	2	1	0	2	0
	FW	ITA	Egidio Calloni	25	3	21	2	2	1	2	0
	FW	ITA	Luciano Gaudino	13	2	10	2	3	0	0	0
	FW	ITA	Giovanni Sartori	5	5	0	0	5	5	0	0
	FW	ITA	Ugo Tosetto	27	1	22	0	3	0	2	1
	FW	ITA	Sergio Valentinuzzi	1	1	0	0	1	1	0	0

Source: ^[8]

References

^ "Attendance Statistics of Serie A". stadiapostcards.com. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
^ "23 aprile 1978:L'esordio di Franco Baresi con il Milan". tribuna.com (in Italian). Retrieved 23 June 2023.
^ Game forfeited by the sport judge (on the pitch 1-2), due to Gianni Rivera being hit by a stone thrown by a spectator.
^ Game forfeited by the sport judge (on the pitch 0-1), due to Pietro Ghedin being hit by a firecracker thrown by a spectator.
^ Due to the disqualification of San Siro.
^ Due to the disqualification of San Siro.
^ "Milan Associazione Calcio 1977–78". magliarossonera.it. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
^ "Milan Associazione Calcio 1977–78". magliarossonera.it. Retrieved 23 June 2023.

Bibliography

Almanacco illustrato del Milan, ed: 2, March 2005. Panini.
Enrico Tosi. La storia del Milan, May 2005. Italia/Italy cid Tosi.
Milan. Sempre con te, December 2009. Mondadori. 2009. ISBN 978-88-04-59118-4.

External links

"Stagione 1977-1978". Magliarossonera.it.

[1] "Attendance Statistics of Serie A". stadiapostcards.com. Retrieved 23 June 2023.

[2] "23 aprile 1978:L'esordio di Franco Baresi con il Milan". tribuna.com (in Italian). Retrieved 23 June 2023.

[3] Game forfeited by the sport judge (on the pitch 1-2), due to Gianni Rivera being hit by a stone thrown by a spectator.

[4] Game forfeited by the sport judge (on the pitch 0-1), due to Pietro Ghedin being hit by a firecracker thrown by a spectator.

[5] Due to the disqualification of San Siro.

[6] Due to the disqualification of San Siro.

[7] "Milan Associazione Calcio 1977–78". magliarossonera.it. Retrieved 23 June 2023.

[8] "Milan Associazione Calcio 1977–78". magliarossonera.it. Retrieved 23 June 2023.

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