AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti was told his position was secure after the 2007 European champions finished fifth in Serie A last term and missed out on this season’s Champions League.

However, two defeats in their opening two league matches have put him under pressure again. The arrivals of Ronaldinho and Andriy Shevchenko were designed to help stop the rot but Milan’s main problem last season was a static midfield and the issue remains unresolved.

Andrea Pirlo, Gennaro Gattuso and Massimo Ambrosini have a habit of standing together in a line near the centre circle and rarely does one of them break forward. This means the front three have to do all the running.

Ancelotti may have to reconsider his tactics if he wants to stay in a job, especially with a much-loved former Milan player looking freely available to take over.

Frank Rijkaard left Barcelona after things went sour at the Nou Camp but his 2006 Champions League-winning side played the sort of wonderfully attacking football the San Siro now craves.

The Dutchman would have to bury the hatchet with Ronaldinho and re-energise an ageing defence but Italian media see him as the ideal candidate.

Ancelotti needs to act fast, or hope Rijkaard is snapped up by another team.

PHOTO: Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti gives instructions to his players during the game at Genoa, Sept. 14 REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito

If you had told Rivaldo a few years ago that he would end up playing in Uzbekistan, it is doubtful he would have believed you.

Playing in Greece with Olimpiakos and AEK Athens was already an unusual place for the ageing former World Cup winner to wind down his career. Gary Lineker went to Japan, David Beckham to the U.S. but the Brazilian signing for Uzbekistan’s Bunyodkor is something else.

At least Rivaldo has been totally open about his reason for going: Money. Uzbek clubs obviously have a lot of it. Kuruvchi managed to persuade Samuel Eto’o to go there last month to discuss a move before he ended up staying at Barcelona.

The Times has found another place where players who are probably past their best tend to head — Serie A. Ronaldinho and Andriy Shevchenko are on the list but the proud Italians will point out that AC Milan shipped out Rivaldo long ago.

If former Milan striker and fallen idol Ronaldo appears at Manchester City, the (English-based) Times may have to eat some humble pie.

Mark Meadows, Milan

PHOTO: AEK Athens forward Rivaldo heads the ball against Getafe during a UEFA Cup match, Feb 21 REUTERS/Susana Vera

Andriy Shevchenko has completed his move back to AC Milan but unlike Ronaldinho’s arrival in July, there was no fanfare from the Rossoneri.

Milan fans looked on with shock, pity and a small sense of ‘we told you so’ as Shevchenko struggled to fit in at Chelsea during two forgettable years in England.

Expectations at the San Siro are not particularly high. Supporters and media are not sure if he will consistently be in the starting XI given the recent injuries which have clearly cut his pace. They also know that not many players succeed when returning to a former club.

But the Ukrainian may surprise a few people if he can stay fit. Milan finished fifth in Serie A last season and just a flash of his old genius could make all the difference. The 2004 European player of the year spent seven stunning seasons with Milan and certainly knows where the San Siro goals are.

We should not underestimate the power of going home.

The futures of coach Avram Grant and several Chelsea players are uncertain following their Champions League final defeat by Manchester United. But how many will leave?

Speculation that Grant will be axed has intensified after chief executive Peter Kenyon said finishing second in the Premier League, Champions League and League Cup was not good enough.

“It’s been an interesting season, but you don’t like finishing second and as runners-up. Given the standards we’ve set, that’s not something we’ve settled for,” he said.

“We’re looking at players who have the potential to be star names. We’ve brought in one player, Jose Bosingwa from Porto, who strengthens a position which has been an issue for us. We’ll take our time to look at what else is needed, but I think that’s two players rather than 20.”

Didier Drogba’s sending off in Moscow on Wednesday could well be his last appearance in blue. The striker has never hidden the fact that a move to AC Milan appeals and the Serie A side are keen to sign him, even if they are only in the UEFA Cup next season.

Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi would also love to have former striker Andriy Shevchenko back at the San Siro. Coach Carlo Ancelotti is not so sure and media reports say Milan will only take the Ukrainian on a free.

Even Chelsea talisman Frank Lampard is not definitely staying. After a difficult period following the death of his mother, the midfielder has said he will talk with Chelsea after England’s forthcoming friendlies.

Inter Milan lie in wait if Lampard decides to move on. Would Jose Mourinho’s possible arrival at the Italian champions increase the possibility of Lampard moving? 

Claude Makelele, Paulo Ferreira, Steve Sidwell, Ricardo Carvalho, Tal Ben Haim, Nicolas Anelka, Carlo Cudicini, Wayne Bridge and Claudio Pizarro are among the other Chelsea players to be linked with a move.

Is Roman Abramovich’s empire crumbling or will a bigger, better Chelsea emerge?

Mark Meadows, Milan

PHOTO: John Terry hits the post with a penalty which would have won the Champions League for Chelsea. May 22 REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

David Beckham slipped and missed a key penalty for England against Portugal at Euro 2004 and now John Terry’s loss of footing has handed the Champions League to Manchester United.

Is it nerves or a lack of technique? Vlog on the pitch regulars Owen Wyatt and Jon Bramley are joined by Pedro Redig to discuss Wednesday’s final, with some fan reactions also included.

Jon thinks Chelsea deserved to win and Pedro wonders if Andriy Shevchenko should have played. Let us know your views.

Submit your comments in the usual way below or if you are feeling adventurous, load a video response to youtube or wherever tagged “vlog on the pitch” and if we like it, we’ll load it up here.

If a footballing-loving Martian suddenly appeared, you’d be hard pressed to persuade him that Andriy Shevchenko was once the most feared striker on our planet.

He broke records galore in seven years at AC Milan, but his two seasons at Chelsea have been utterly miserable. Injury has played a part in his fall from grace, but generally the 31-year-old has been too slow for the demands of English football and has lost his magic touch.

Why then are AC Milan so obsessed with bringing him back to the San Siro? You could count on one hand the number of players that have gone back to their former clubs and succeeded. Ian Rush (Liverpool-Juventus-Liverpool) may be one along with Juan Roman Riquelme (Boca Juniors) and Mark Hughes (Manchester United) but there are few other instances (Johann Cruyff, Robbie Fowler and Teddy Sheringham were never as good on returns to Ajax, Liverpool and Spurs for example).

Club president Silvio Berlusconi, a personal friend of the Ukrainian, may think the striker can roll back the years if he returns to familiar, comfortable surroundings. But Serie A is not the league he left. The play has got quicker, conversely because the standard is lower.

Milan have a habit of buying players when they are past their best. Ronaldo was an injury waiting to happen when he signed from Real Madrid. Now the soon-to-be ex European champions are courting Barcelona’s Ronaldinho, simply because he may come on the market because he is not as good as he was.

Think also of Inter Milan, who brought in Luis Figo when he was in decline and Patrick Vieira after he’d had his best years at Arsenal. Contrast that with English football, which is so dominant now because they buy players at their prime or just before (Cristiano Ronaldo, Fernando Torres).

To be fair to Milan, they took a gamble signing 18-year-old Brazilian striker Alexadre Pato, and it has partially paid off. Carlo Ancelotti has said Pato and Shevchenko are too similar, but that hasn’t stopped Berlusconi.

Media reports say Sheva may be given a free transfer by Chelsea. I think he should resist the temptation to return to Milan. What do you think?

Mark Meadows, Milan

PHOTO: Shevchenko with Chelsea team mate Didier Drogba, whose form has often kept the Ukrainian out of the starting lineup.  March 2007 REUTERS/Eddie Keogh