There is still some 40 days left in the summer transfer window. A first look will show that Milan have outspent all of Serie A and most other teams across Europe, so far, but how many of the team needs have been addressed?
Milan finished the 2020-2021 season in a good position but getting ‘back home’ to the Champions League brought with it a more urgent need to be a protagonist, as Maldini himself put it. Milan finds itself in the lowest pot 4 for the upcoming Champions League season with many areas of the pitch to improve. Most expert analysis on how well Milan can navigate the European Competition and the domestic one will depend wholly on how the team looks come September 1st when the window is closed. It should be interesting though and if you are betting visit free bet sites such as free-bets.uk.com and get your Milan bets on early.
There have been six signing and confirmations so far costing close to €60 million. Fikayo Tomori was all but confirmed earlier in the year and Milan’s €28 million buy option with Chelsea while very attractive took out a good chunk of any budget Milan would have this summer. The team also moved very swiftly to replace Donnarumma with Maignan and used another sizeable portion of the available cash. Further to that a laudable negotiating act converted Tonali’s loan to a permanent deal.
The team had to shift to filling other weak spots. A veteran alternative to Ibra was sought and Giroud arrived on the cheap. All the while expectations were that he would be a free transfer but he offers plenty of winning experience. The never ending full back saga was somewhat addressed by Ballo-Toure. The Senegalese/French player is a relative unknown although he has played for Monaco and Lille. Nevertheless he looks to be a good back up to Theo. Brahim Diaz was a Milan player last season, technically on a dry loan but it was an open secret that the team will attempt to keep him longer. A friendly Real Madrid, now led again by Ancelotti, allowed the player to stay for a further two years and this time with an official option to buy. Diaz’s presence falls clearly in the urgent need category as Calhanoglu’s departure had left Milan with a big hole in the creative department.
The team has other weaknesses. For one the aforementioned Diaz is not enough. Another player is needed. Whether it be Nikola Vlasic, Marcel Sabitzer, Hakim Ziyech or any other this team can not afford to go without another quality player in the trequartista position. This brings us up to the right wing spot. Saelemaekers and Castillejo can not be the duo next season. Whether it be Berardi, a player like Ziyech shifting to the right or a name not yet mentioned an upgrade on the right is a must.
Other signings are in the works as well and might be surprising, or not. A young third string forward like Kaio Jorge for example. A Dalot return to help Calabria as another example. Bakayoko – if not the home grown Pobega – as yet another returnee to name another. As with every mercato new and often unrealistic rumours will pop up every day. All bets taken as to how the team will evolve as the summer moves forward.
