1998 AC Milan Home – Maldini #3 Small

Season Overview

The 1998-99 campaign was the year Milan got back to winning after two lean seasons. Silvio Berlusconi hired Alberto Zaccheroni from Udinese, and Zaccheroni brought striker Oliver Bierhoff and wing-back Thomas Helveg with him. He introduced an attacking 3-4-3 that later shifted to a 3-4-1-2 to make room for a creative playmaker. Bierhoff was the ideal focal point and scored 20 league goals.

The title run came in the second half of the season. Milan chased Lazio and Fiorentina, then won their last seven league matches, including a 2-1 win over Perugia on the final day. Lazio lost the title on that last day. Milan finished on 70 points, with 20 wins, 10 draws and 4 defeats, and took their 16th Scudetto in the club’s centenary year. The Coppa Italia ended early, in the round of 16. This is the Adidas-era red-and-black stripe that Scudetto-winning Rossoneri wore.

Player’s Impact – Paolo Maldini

Maldini was captain, and the number 3 on this shirt was central to the title. He started all 31 of his Serie A appearances and played 2,746 minutes. He added one league goal and made two more Coppa Italia appearances. He anchored a back line that conceded just 34 league goals in 34 games, the foundation of a title won by one-goal margins.

It was Maldini’s sixth Serie A title, and he went on to win more. For collectors, a Maldini #3 shirt from this season marks the captain of a championship side, and few names carry more weight on a vintage rail.

AC Milan Squad – 1998-99 Serie A

Manager: Alberto Zaccheroni

Goalkeepers: Christian Abbiati, Sebastiano Rossi, Jens Lehmann (left in winter), Giorgio Frezzolini

Defenders: Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Costacurta, Luigi Sala, Roberto Ayala, Christian Ziege, Bruno N’Gotty, Francesco Coco, Samir Beloufa, Giuseppe Cardone, André Cruz (left in winter)

Midfielders: Thomas Helveg, Demetrio Albertini, Massimo Ambrosini, Andrés Guglielminpietro, Zvonimir Boban, Leonardo, Domenico Morfeo, Federico Giunti, Ibrahim Ba, Roberto Donadoni, Giampiero Maini

Forwards: Oliver Bierhoff, George Weah, Maurizio Ganz, Mohammed Aliyu Datti