AC Milan legend Marco van Basten has said he is unhappy about the decline in his old club's crowds and the attractiveness of Serie A.
Although Milan take on Napoli at a sold-out San Siro on Saturday night, a full house is now a rarity at Van Basten's old club.
With average crowds less than half the stadium's 80,000 capacity, Van Basten -- who scored 90 Milan goals in 147 games between 1987 and 1995 -- told La Gazzetta dello Sport: "You know what makes me the saddest of all? To see San Siro half empty.
"That was unimaginable in my day. Milan may be lacking big-name players, but they are also lacking a modern structure.
"Things are not going any better in Italy's other stadiums either, with almost all of them the same as they were in the 90s.
"Italy had the richest, most beautiful league. Everybody wanted to play in Italy, but you did not know how to manage this advantage.
"With scandals, inadequate structures and arguments, you've fallen behind."
The former Netherlands star, a Ballon d'Or winner while with Milan in 1988-89, said "the mistake was in thinking of the money too much," with "everything being done for the armchair spectator but nothing for the fans."
He said the Italian league had been "thinking only of today and forgetting tomorrow, so you shouldn't be surprised to be behind now."
Change is on the horizon for Milan, whose sale to a Chinese consortium is due to be completed in early March.
But Van Basten said: "I cannot even bear thinking about Inter and Milan being run by Chinese owners.
"Such glorious clubs must remain in Italian hands. It's not just about history, but also passion. That is priceless."
Van Basten added that the decline in Serie A had led many of Italy's brightest coaching talents to work in other leagues.
Claudio Ranieri won the Premier League with Leicester City last season, while Antonio Conte's Chelsea currently top the English table.
"Ranieri did something incredible with Leicester and now there is Conte, who -- given his age -- I would say is currently the top manager," he said.
"He's leading the Premier League with a side who are no better than the others, while other big names are behind.
"Not only that, but Conte has shown how he can be a great national team coach with Italy and I can assure you, having tried it myself, that it's not easy to coach a country."