 Complete the following phrase:  As Cassano faced competition for a spot in the Milan starting XI from the likes of forwards Zlatan Ibrahimović, Alexandre Pato and Robinho, a lot of speculation formed over his future for the following season, as Cassano wanted to gain more playing time, due to his wish to keep his spot in the Italian national side. Although he was initially linked to other clubs, he stayed with Milan, and after a good pre-season, he won the 