Like art, business or politics, football is shaped by personalities. The present one is influenced by three coaches from Italy, Portugal and Spain. This will also be evident at the Champions League final between Chelsea and Manchester City, the highlight of the season.
The decisive innovation can be traced back to Arrigo Sacchi. He invented the operating system that is still valid today, the Microsoft of football, without which nothing works: ball-oriented zonal marking.
With this type of collective defending, he shaped AC Milan around the outstanding individualists Franco Baresi, Paolo Maldini, Ruud Gullit and Roberto Donadoni into the strongest team in the world.
The Rossoneri reached their zenith in 1989, beating Real Madrid 5-0 in the semi-finals of the European Champions Cup and Steaua Bucharest, winners in 1986, 4-0 in the final with the future world star Gheorghe Hagi.