1978–79 A.C. Milan season

Milan Associazione Calcio
1978–79 season
Chairman	Felice Colombo
Manager	Nils Liedholm
Stadium	San Siro
Serie A	1st; 10th title ; (in European Cup)
Coppa Italia	First round
UEFA Cup	Round of 16
Top goalscorer	League: Bigon (12); All: Bigon (17)
Average home league attendance	48,358
Home colours	Away colours
	← →

In the season 1978/79 Milan Associazione Calcio competed in Serie A, Coppa Italia and UEFA Cup.

Summary[]

The team fails to advance in Coppa Italia, Milan finishes in Group 4 in second place with 5 points with games won against Lecce and Foggia in the first rounds, after a shocking defeat with SPAL the team did not reach the victory against Catanzaro.^[2]

Although, Perugia were the first team during the round-robin era to go through the season undefeated, due to their number of drawn matches, they finished second in the league behind Milan.^[3]

Domestic league gave better results, with side stable at top in mid season. Retour half never saw Milan lose two consecutives games,^[4] for a trend that let him to recover points on Perugia. Following draws, in the final part of the season, insured Scudetto. It was the first domestic title since 1968, the tenth overall.

In a key strategic movement by manager Nils Liedholm, newly arrived Walter Novellino from Vicenza played as striker along with Stefano Chiodi and Gianni Rivera.^[5] In the final round of this campaign, the club captain Gianni Rivera retired after 19 seasons, he played 658 games scoring 164 goals letting the band to Albertino Bigon. Also, manager Nils Liedholm leave the club after a contract dispute with the chairman.^[6]

Squad[]

^[7] 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	Franco Baresi
—	DF	ITA	Aldo Bet
—	DF	ITA	Simone Boldini
—	DF	ITA	Fulvio Collovati
—	DF	ITA	Aldo Maldera
—	DF	ITA	Alberto Minoia
—	MF	ITA	Alberto Bigon (vice captain)


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	MF	ITA	Ruben Buriani
—	MF	ITA	Fabio Capello
—	MF	ITA	Walter De Vecchi
—	MF	ITA	Giorgio Morini
—	MF	ITA	Walter Novellino
—	MF	ITA	Gianni Rivera (captain)
—	FW	ITA	Roberto Antonelli
—	FW	ITA	Stefano Chiodi
—	FW	ITA

Transfers[]

In
Pos.	Name	from
MF	Walter De Vecchi	Monza
MF	Walter Novellino	Perugia
FW	Stefano Chiodi	Bologna

Out
Pos.	Name	to
DF	Giuseppe Sabadini	Catanzaro
DF	Maurizio Turone	Catanzaro
FW	Egidio Calloni	Hellas Verona
FW	Luciano Gaudino	A.S. Bari
FW	Ugo Tosetto	Avellino
FW	Sergio Valentinuzzi	Savona

Competitions[]

^[8]

Serie A[]

League table[]

Pos	Team v t	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Milan (C)	30	17	10	3	46	19	+27	44	Qualification to European Cup
2	Perugia	30	11	19	0	34	16	+18	41	Qualification to UEFA Cup
3	Juventus	30	12	13	5	40	23	+17	37	Qualification to Cup Winners' Cup
4	Internazionale	30	10	16	4	38	24	+14	36	Qualification to UEFA Cup
5	Torino	30	11	14	5	35	23	+12	36	Qualification to UEFA Cup

Source: Panini
(C) Champion

Result by round[]

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30
Ground	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	A	H	A
Result	W	W	D	W	W	L	W	W	D	D	W	W	W	W	W	L	W	W	D	W	D	D	D	L	D	W	W	W	D	D
Position	1	1	1	1	1	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

Source: Competitive matches
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss; P = Postponed; = Leader, 1979–80 European Cup; = 1979–80 UEFA Cup

Matches[]

1 October 1978 1	Milan	1-0	Avellino	Milan
	Buriani 79'	Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 42,147 Referee: Mattei

8 October 1978 2	Roma	0-3	Milan	Roma
		Report	15' Maldera 38' (pen), 61' (pen) Chiodi	Stadium: Stadio Olimpico Attendance: 69,410 Referee: Agnolin

15 October 1978 3	Milan	0-0	Ascoli	Milan
		Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 45,149 Referee:

22 October 1978 4	Atalanta	1-3	Milan	Milan
	31' (pen)	Report	3' Maldera 35' (pen), 60' (pen) Chiodi	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 31,788 Referee:

29 October 1978 5	Milan	4-1	Fiorentina	Milan
	Minoia 5' Bigon 16', 39', 80'	Report	29' Amenta	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 46,136 Referee:

5 November 1978 6	Juventus	1-0	Milan	Torino
	Bettega 2'	Report		Stadium: Stadio Comunale Attendance: 66,377 Referee:

12 November 1978 7	Milan	1-0	Inter	Milan
	Maldera 49'	Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 65,965 Referee: Michelotti

19 November 1978 8	Lanerossi Vicenza	2-3	Milan	Vicenza
	Paolo Rossi 45' 89'	Report	8' Maldera 65' Bigon 80' Boldini	Stadium: Stadio Romeo Menti Attendance: 30,572 Referee:

26 November 1978 9	S.S.C. Napoli	1-1	Milan	Napoli
	Savoldi 4'	Report	57' De Vecchi	Stadium: Stadio San Paolo Attendance: 68,185 Referee:

3 December 1978 10	Milan	1-1	Perugia	Milan
	Antonelli 62'	Report	3'	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 44,825 Referee:

10 December 1978 11	Milan	1-0	Torino	Milan
	De Vecchi 3'	Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 37,415 Referee:

17 December 1978 12	Hellas Verona	1-3	Milan	Verona
	62'	Report	54' Novellino 63' Antonelli 73' De Vecchi	Stadium: Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi Attendance: 30,917 Referee:

7 January 1979 13	Milan	4-0	Catanzaro	Milan
	Chiodi 16' Bigon 21' Novellino 76' Antonelli 81'	Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 35,309 Referee:

14 January 1979 14	Bologna	0-1	Milan	Bologna
		Report	61' Maldera	Stadium: Comunale Attendance: 47,709 Referee:

21 January 1979 15	Milan	2-0	Lazio	Milan
	Maldera 16' Bigon 65'	Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 39,090 Referee: Pieri

28 January 1979 16	Avellino	1-0	Milan	Avellino
	Vincenzo Romano 14'	Report		Stadium: Stadio Partenio Attendance: 47,286 Referee: Michelotti

4 February 1979 17	Milan	1-0	Roma	Milan
	Antonelli 80' (pen)	Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 46,396 Referee:

11 February 1979 18	Ascoli	0-1	Milan	Ascoli Piceno
		Report	30' Maldera	Stadium: Stadio Cino e Lillo Del Duca Attendance: 37,256 Referee:

18 February 1979 19	Milan	1-1	Atalanta	Milan
	Bigon 24'	Report	42' Tavola	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 44,532 Referee:

4 March 1979 20	Fiorentina	2-3	Milan	Firenze
	44' Baresi 65' (o.g.)	Report	5' Maldera 35', 53' Bigon	Stadium: Stadio Comunale Attendance: 55,140

11 March 1979 2	Milan	0-0	Juventus	Milan
		Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 65,235 Referee: Michelotti

18 March 1979 22	Inter Milan	2-2	Milan	Milan
	Oriali 50' Altobelli 78'	Report	80', 89' De Vecchi	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 64,868 Referee: Agnolin

25 March 1979 23	Milan	0-0	Lanerossi Vicenza	Milan
		Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 43,806 Referee:

1 April 1979 24	Milan	0-1	Napoli	Milan
		Report	40'	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 51,311 Referee:

8 April 1979 25	Perugia	1-1	Milan	Perugia
	17' (pen)	Report	15' (pen) Chiodi	Stadium: Stadio Renato Curi Attendance: 28,717 Referee: Agnolin

14 April 1979 26	Torino	0-3	Milan	Torino
		Report	41', 53' Bigon 45' (pen) Chiodi	Stadium: Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino Attendance: 56,429 Referee:

22 April 1979 27	Milan	2-1	Hellas Verona	Milan
	Rivera 47' Novellino 84'	Report	24' Calloni	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 51,247 Referee:

29 April 1979 28	Catanzaro	1-3	Milan	Catanzaro
	Ranieri 52'	Report	48' Maldera 58' Novellino 89' Antonelli	Stadium: Stadio Comunale Attendance: 25,491 Referee:

6 May 1979 29	Milan	0-0	Bologna	Milan
		Report		Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 65,044 Referee:

13 May 1979 30	Lazio	1-1	Milan	Roma
	Bruno Giordano 32'	Report	8' Bigon	Stadium: Attendance: 53,550 Referee:

Coppa Italia[]

First round[]

Group 4

30 August 1978 1	Lecce	2-3	Milan	Lecce
	36' Magistrelli 69' (pen)		10' Rivera 14', 64' Bigon	Stadium: Comunale Attendance: 25,000 Referee:

3 September 1978 2	Milan	3-0	Foggia	Milan
	Maldera 37' (pen), 55' Chiodi 48'			Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 22,146 Referee:

10 September 1978 3	SPAL	3-1	Milan	Ferrara
	24', 88' 42'		85' Maldera	Stadium: Comunale Attendance: 22,000 Referee:

17 September 1978 4	Milan	2-2	Catanzaro	Milan
	Chiodi 19' (pen) Bet 65'		59' Ranieri 89' (pen) Palanca	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 34,236 Referee: Agnolin

UEFA Cup[]

First round[]

13 September 1978	Milan	1-0	FC Lokomotíva Košice	Milan
	Novellino 34'			Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 34,529 Referee: Charles Scerri

27 September 1978	FC Lokomotíva Košice	1-0 (6-7 p)	Milan	Kosice
	Ján Kozák 81'			Stadium: Attendance: 30,000 Referee:
	Penalties
	Móder		Maldera Novellino Chiodi Buriani Antonelli Morini De Vecchi Baresi

Round of 32[]

19 October 1978	Levski Spartak	1-1	Milan	Sofia
	12'		11' Chiodi	Stadium: Georgi Asparuhov Attendance: 55,000 Referee: Linemayr

1 November 1978	Milan	3-0	Levski Spartak	Milan
	Maldera 12' Bigon 40' Chiodi 75'			Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 24,635 Referee: Gordon

Eightfinals[]

23 November 1978	Milan	2-2	Manchester City	Milan
	Bigon 59', 82'		37' Kidd 57' Power	Stadium: Stadio San Siro Attendance: 27,102 Referee:

6 December 1978	Manchester City	3-0 ^[9]	Milan	Manchester
	Booth 15' Hartford 31' Kidd 43'			Stadium: Maine Road Attendance: 50,000 Referee: Aldinger

Statistics[]

Players statistics[]

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		1978–79 Serie A
No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
	GK	ITA	Albertosi	30	-19	30	-19
	DF	ITA	Collovati	27	0	27	0
	DF	ITA	Baresi	30	0	30	0
	DF	ITA	Bet	17	0	16+1	0
	DF	ITA	Maldera	30	9	30	9
	MF	ITA	Novellino	30	4	30	4
	MF	ITA	Bigon	26	12	26	12
	MF	ITA	Buriani	29	1	29	1
	MF	ITA	De Vecchi	28	5	28	5
	FW	ITA	Chiodi	24	7	24	7
	FW	ITA	Antonelli	21	5	19+2	5
	GK	ITA	Rigamonti	1	0	1	0
	MF	ITA	Rivera	13	1	13	1
	MF	ITA	Morini	14	0	11+3	0
	DF	ITA	Boldini	14	1	7+7	1
	MF	ITA	Capello	8	0	3+5	0
	FW	ITA	Sartori	7	0	2+5	0
	DF	ITA	Minoia	2	1	2	1

Source: http://calcio-seriea.net/presenze/1978/808/

References[]

^ "Attendance Statistics of Serie A". stadiapostcards.com.
^ Almanacco illustrato del Milan, 2ª ed.,March 2005 (in Italian), Panini, p. 418-419.
^ "Classifica Parziale Stagione 1978-1979 - Giornata: 5" (in Italian). wikicalcioitalia.info. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
^ "Classifica Parziale Stagione 1978-1979 - Giornata: 24" (in Italian). wikicalcioitalia.info. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
^ "Milan Stagione 1978-1979" (in Italian). magliarossonera.it.
^ Gianni Rivera and Oreste Del Buono, Dalla Corea al Quirinale (in Italian), Rizzoli
^ "ACM Squad". footballsquads.co.uk.^{[permanent dead link]}
^ "Milan season 78-79" (PDF).
^ suspended on 5 December 1978 due to fog: Almanacco illustrato del Milan, 2ª ed.,March 2005 (in Italian), Panini, p. 419.

External links[]

[1] "Attendance Statistics of Serie A". stadiapostcards.com.

[2] Almanacco illustrato del Milan, 2ª ed.,March 2005 (in Italian), Panini, p. 418-419.

[3] "Classifica Parziale Stagione 1978-1979 - Giornata: 5" (in Italian). wikicalcioitalia.info. Retrieved 4 March 2012.

[4] "Classifica Parziale Stagione 1978-1979 - Giornata: 24" (in Italian). wikicalcioitalia.info. Retrieved 4 March 2012.

[5] "Milan Stagione 1978-1979" (in Italian). magliarossonera.it.

[6] Gianni Rivera and Oreste Del Buono, Dalla Corea al Quirinale (in Italian), Rizzoli

[7] "ACM Squad". footballsquads.co.uk.^{[permanent dead link]}

[8] "Milan season 78-79" (PDF).

[9] suspended on 5 December 1978 due to fog: Almanacco illustrato del Milan, 2ª ed.,March 2005 (in Italian), Panini, p. 419.

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