Nordahl tops the goalscoring charts as AC Milan are crowned Italian champions again
Andrea Rizzoli was about to turn 40 when he became the President of AC Milan. The son of the famous publisher Angelo, he introduced himself with a great signing early on, one which was intended to replace Gunnar Gren, the Swedish professor. The acquisition was Juan Alberto Schiaffino, a world champion with Uruguay in 1950. He joined from Peñarol, who believed that the 30-year-old’s best days were behind him. The opposite turned out to be true: Pepe played a starring role for AC Milan until the age of 36, and his wonderful pieces of play and silky touches earned him the adoration of the Rossoneri faithful.
With Schiaffino and Liedholm pulling the strings, the ‘Fireman’ Nordahl finished top of the goalscoring charts for the fifth time with a tally of 27. But 1954 was also the year when Cesare Maldini and Eduardo Ricagni arrived and Nordahl became captain. After Puricelli had replaced Guttmann in the Rossoneri dugout, AC Milan found the right recipe for success in the final stretch (defeating Lazio 4-2 in Rome, Juventus 3-1, Genoa 8-0 at the Marassi and Spal 6-0). An Udinese side inspired by the Swedish star Arne Selmosson were thus beaten to the title.
