With the departure of Kaka from AC Milan to join the bright lights of Madrid the responsibility for getting Milan back on track has been left on the shoulders of young Brazilian forward Alexandre Pato.

Many Milan fans will be hoping to see Ronaldinho step up this season and play for the Milan jersey after what could only be described as an average season for the former World player of the year and the hopes are not high by many Milan fans that he will turn it around this season.

Pato has been consistently improving and is still only 19 years old. During pre-season Pato has impressed and looks to be relishing his role now he has emerged from the shadow of Kaka and this has meant he has been the subject of constant speculation surrounding his future at the club. The speculation has intensified due to Carlo Ancelotti’s move to Chelsea with the Italian said to be very interested in taking his former player to London with him, however this now seems unlikely for at least this season.

The Milan fans have been slightly frustrated by the lack of big name signings since losing Kaka to Madrid, they have however managed to sign Klass-Jan Huntelaar to bolster their attacking options. Milan are desperate to challenge for the title this season after seeing rivals Inter Milan win the Serie A title last season again but the responsibility looks like falling on the shoulders of young Pato so it will be interesting to see if he copes with the pressure.

Written by Danny Watson, a sports writer who blogs about football news.