Football is a funny game. There is no real definite formula for success. Cups and titles can be won by teams through any number of means. Sometimes it is sheer luck, sometimes it is individual brilliance and sometimes an injustice can go your way. But to rely on any one of these means or any combination is downright foolish. Luck is a funny thing too and it can either play against you or with you, there is no knowing. To rely on individual brilliance is also a big gamble. Surely there have been and are players that have the ability to single-handedly win trophies and cups for their clubs but such players are still relatively rare. And unfortunately, in football as in life, sometimes things are just downright unfair, a penalty is not given, a goal is not awarded or any delibrate form of cheating is not picked up and one team stands to benefit whilst the other suffers hopelessly.

But there are measures a team or club can take to ensure as best as is possible that success will be achieved. One such measure is to try and dominate possession and commit to an attacking style of play. Sure it sounds simple enough but in no way is it simple. But if a team can dominate the game and the possession and create as many chances to score as possible then a team gives themselves more of chance of winning the game. It is basic probability. Because to win a football match you need to score. To score, a team first needs to have the ball and create a chance with it. The more times a team does this the more chances they will have to score a goal and importantly the less chances the other team will have. As the saying goes, attack is the best form of defence.

Despite what the current standings in the Serie A may imply, it is Milan that have a better chance of winning the UCL than any other Italian team and it is because we play attacking football and have done so for some time now. Barcelona also have a great chance of retaining their trophy no less due to their attacking style of football. It is no wonder why both these sides have won four of the last seven Champions League titles. Whilst teams like Chelsea and Inter that approach the game more defensively have come up short on numerous occassions. This is no coincidence.

Of course playing attacking football will not always work and sometimes playing defensively does. A team like Greece after all proved that success can be achieved this way. However, such dominating defensive displays are rare these days. Even the Italian sides, traditionally masters of this craft, have struggled to succeed using this approach. For unless the team is able to completely shut out the opposition, then eventually something will and more often than not does give as Chelsea discovered last year in their semi final second leg against Barcelona.

The recent trend in the UCL shows that it is the attacking teams like Barcelona and Milan that have been the most successful. In the modern era, Milan have been the most successful side in the European Cup/UCL and it is no coincidence that this is due to the attacking philosophies of first Sacchi and then later Ancelotti. For sure it has not yielded the best results in the defensive minded Serie A but it does not matter when it is the UCL that is more important.

In the case of Inter, I would say that their approach against Barcelona at the Nou Camp was not even defensive but rather plain clueless. Defending is about organisation and tenacity but Inter and Mourinho seem to think it is simply about keeping the players in their own half chasing shadows.

Another difference between teams like Inter and teams like Milan is the sense of unity within the team and the club. Inter are a team of big egoes including the coach. So big are these egoes that the concept of team surely evades the Inter dressing room. But at Milan there is a real sense of community, of unity. This unity at Milan is so well known that it has been given the name of ‘The Milan family’. Players over the years have constantly noted this ‘family’ that exists at the club and how it is special. Like family, once you are part of it, you stay forever. It is for this reason that so many former players make up the coaching staff, like Tassotti, Leonardo, Baresi and Savicevic. And it is this sense of ‘family’ that has played a significant role in helping the club to success in recent times. For football is a team sport and a team can only succeed if truly united.

Barcelona also have this same sense of unity due to their excellent youth set up which provided no less than seven of the starting players in last years Champions League winning final and in the match against Inter last night. Barcelona, like Milan, benefit from this sense of unity and even though this unity exists at both clubs for different reasons as Milan cannot boast about an equal youth system, it has had the same effect for both clubs.

This year at Milan it is no different. The team, after a tough start, is clearly united. It is so evident when the players are on the field and especially after they score. It is great to see and no doubt it is a major reason for the upturn in form.

With Milan back to playing some of their best attacking football in some time and with the team united as ever, we are in a good position to do well in the Champions League this year. Because as recent history shows, positive attacking football together with team unity go a long way to winning the Champions League.