Last night Milan put on a display that was worthy of a championship winning side. It was not the greatest performance and for the last thirty five minutes of the game they played with ten men, but despite not being at their best the Rossoneri still managed to score two goals to claim victory and this is exactly the hallmark of a championship winning side.

Max Allegri’s side are, in midfield, absolutely depleted with injuries. Gennaro Gattuso, Andrea Pirlo, Clarence Seedorf, Kevin Prince Boateng, Mathieu Flamini and now, it seems, Massimo Ambrosini too, are on the injury list.

Despite the absence of these players in the past week/s or so, it has not seemed to affect the Rossoneri’s results. Last weekend they convincingly dispatched Cesena, during the week they accounted for Sampdoria and last night they brushed aside Catania.

This says two things about Milan. One, even when the chips are down they have enough resolve to still make it count. Two, the players that are missing in action perhaps are not all that important to the side. Clarence Seedorf definitely fits into this category.

For the match against Catania, Milan started with a midfield comprised of Alexander Merkel, Mark van Bommel and Massimo Ambrosini. By the end of the match, it was Thiago Silva, Urby Emmanuelson and Marek Jankulovski that formed the midfield three.

Despite the midfield revolution that occurred during the course of the match, the team maintained enough composure to hold out the home side and break down their resilient defence.

In fact, if anything, following the sending off of Mark van Bommel in what was his Serie A debut, Milan improved. Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s free kick shortly after the Dutchman’s dismissal, parried by Catania keeper Mariano Andujar and expertly followed up by Robinho to tap home forced Catania out of their own half in search of an equaliser.

The Sicilians would have fancied themselves to get back in the match after gaining a numerical advantage. However, as Diego Simeone’s side pushed forward, space opened up for Milan that made them more threatening going forward.

Urby Emmanuelson had Milan’s first great chance to seal the win but in the end it was that man again, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who again secured victory slotting home a perfectly timed ball from Robinho.

There is simply no arguing that the performances of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and even Robinho so far this season are a major reason why Milan are top of the standings. Both, though especially the former, have been decisive on a number of occasions this season.

But it would be unfair to only praise the contribution of Milan’s still new attacking duo. In these last few weeks where the depth and character of the side have really been tested, a number of other players have shone too.

Thiago Silva has been outstanding whether he has been asked to play in central midfield or defence. Last night against Catania, when the side was again short in numbers in middle of the park, the Brazilian was asked to move into midfield and again he fitted in seamlessly. If anything, despite only playing this role on three occasions, he has looked just at home in midfield as he does when playing in central defence. His impressive displays in midfield have inevitably led many to compare him to former Milan great, Marcel Desailly, and it is not an undeserving comparison.

Mario Yepes is another who warrants praise. Having seen little action before this month, Yepes has been a rock for Milan at the back. Last night against Catania, it was no different as the 34 year old put in another towering display to keep the Sicilians at bay.

Like Yepes, young Alexander Merkel has been relishing the chance given to him as a result of all the injuries to first team regulars.  The Kazakhstan born starlet has come on in leaps and bounds and though he was not at his best last night, he has definitely done enough already to show that he can play a bigger role for the club.

With Mark van Bommel set to miss the Lazio clash and with Massimo Ambrosini again limping off with an injury, Milan’s midfield crisis looks set to continue. More questions will be asked of Max Allegri’s side as a result when they take on Lazio on Tuesday.

It is testing times for Milan, but one feels that if the side continues as they have done during this difficult period then the Scudetto is theirs to lose.