The season began with the three matches of the first round of the Coppa Italia, where Milan, in group 4 with Brescia, Mantova and Varese, obtained as many victories, thus qualifying for the quarter-finals.[citation needed]
In the league, Milan, after two draws in the first 2 games, obtained five consecutive victories, and moved to second place in the standings behind Napoli, also thanks to the victory in Turin against Juventus for 2–0 and in the derby with Inter for 3–0. On the 10th round, the Rossoneri beat the Neapolitans at the San Paolo (0–1, then 0–2 on a resolution by the sports judge for the throwing of firecrackers on the pitch by Napoli fans)[2] and overtook them in the standings. At the end of the first half of the season, Milan were unbeaten with 24 points, two more than Napoli and three more than Inter. On matchday 20, the Nerazzurri defeated the Rossoneri for the first time in the championship and moved within just one point of their city rivals. Two rounds later, Inter hooked Milan at the top of the rankings and the following day they surpassed them thanks to the home defeat of the Rossoneri against Varese.[3] Inter maintained the lead of the standings until the end, and Milan finished in second place, four points behind, which granted them the qualification to the first edition of the UEFA Cup.
The season ended, between May and June 1971, with the matches of the final round of the Coppa Italia, which Milan entered after eliminating Livorno in the quarter-finals (2–0 home win at the end of September and 4–0 away in early November). The Rossoneri, in the group with Fiorentina, Napoli and Torino, obtained three wins, one draw and two defeats and finished in first place in the standings with 7 points, tied with Torino. For the trophy to be awarded, a play-off between Milan and Turin was necessary, which took place on 27 June 1971 at the Ferraris Stadium in Genoa; Torino, after the 0–0 draw in the overtime, won on penalties by 5–3 and thus won their fourth Coppa Italia.[4] Gianni Rivera, who in the play-off missed two out of five penalties (the regulation of the time, in fact, allowed more than one consecutive penalty to be kicked by a single player), was the top scorer of the competition, with seven goals, for the second time in his career.
Shortly before the end of the season, Franco Carraro left the position of president of the company, which was taken on by Federico Sordillo, previously vice-president of the club.[citation needed]
Squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
^Forfaited game imposed by the sports judge due to firecrackers thrown on the pitch by Napoli supporters (on the pitch the result was 0–1, with a goal of Prati)
^Round 11 game, postponed with one day for inaccessibility of the pitch due to snow
