Just five goals from the attacking department in the second half of the season: Milan’s numbers raise concerns
AC Milan are confronting a statistic that simply cannot be ignored: in the second half of the 2025-2026 Serie A campaign, the Rossoneri’s forwards have scored a combined total of just five goals. A figure that weighs heavily on the ambitions of a club with the history and prestige of the Diavolo.
Who scored and who didn’t
Only three of the five attackers available to coach Allegri have contributed to that meagre tally. Rafael Leao netted twice, as did Christopher Nkunku, while Niclas Füllkrug found the back of the net just once. Both Christian Pulisic and Santiago Gimenez remain without a goal in the second half of the season — the latter affected by a serious injury that kept him sidelined for four months.
Ironically, it has been the midfielders and defenders who have made the difference in front of goal in 2026: Adrien Rabiot with two goals, Strahinja Pavlović with two as well, plus individual strikes from De Winter, Luka Modrić and Youssouf Fofana against Torino.
Record-breaking goal droughts: the numbers that demand attention
Looking at the individual dry spells, the picture becomes even more striking:
- Christopher Nkunku: goalless for 103 days, his last strike coming in Bologna vs Milan.
- Christian Pulisic: goalless for 100 days, last scoring in Milan’s 3-0 win over Verona on December 28th.
- Niclas Füllkrug: hasn’t found the net in 79 days, since Milan-Lecce 1-0 on January 18th.
- Santiago Gimenez: last league goal came in Milan-Bologna 3-1, 63 days ago, though his lengthy injury layoff must be taken into account.
- Rafael Leao: the most “recent” scorer with a 37-day drought, and with nine Serie A goals he remains Milan’s top scorer this season.
No 20-goal striker since 2015: the last was Carlos Bacca
There is another historical statistic fuelling the debate: AC Milan have not had a striker capable of approaching the 20-goal mark in Serie A for eleven years. The last to do so was Carlos Bacca in the 2015-2016 season, when the Colombian hitman bagged 18 league goals. Since then, only Olivier Giroud and Zlatan Ibrahimović reached 15, but nobody has come close to that benchmark again.
For a club of Milan’s stature and ambition, this highlights the pressing need to invest in a world-class centre-forward — a profile capable of guaranteeing at least 20 goals per season.
Shared responsibility and a look to the future
It would be unfair to place the entire burden on the strikers’ shoulders alone. The responsibility must be shared: from the transfer market, which failed to provide the right pieces from the outset, to the tactical system, which at times has limited attacking output, and naturally the individual players who have not been clinical enough when opportunities have arisen.
Nevertheless, the outlook remains positive. Milan still have seven matches to turn the season around and secure Champions League qualification. With a potential switch to the 4-3-3 and all attackers now fit and available, the ingredients for a turnaround are in place. There is no shortage of talent in this squad — all that’s needed is the right spark to ignite the attack and give the Rossoneri faithful the excitement they deserve.
Come summer, the transfer window can address the gaps and deliver the 20-goal striker that Milan have been missing for far too long. The club’s glorious history teaches us that after difficult moments, the most spectacular comebacks always follow.
