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Defense:

Allegri knows exactly what he wants: a strong, experienced centre-back who can lead the defence. The Champions League is a different proposition to Serie A; the current squad simply won’t be enough. Gabbia will obviously stay, as will De Winter and Pavlovic (barring any crazy offers from the Premier League). As for Tomori, there are assessments to be made; with his contract renewal approaching, it cannot be ruled out that the English defender might leave Milan should offers come in, despite his great attachment to the Rossoneri colours.

At the end of the season, there will be a meeting with Bartesaghi’s entourage to assess the situation and decide whether to continue together; the situation is different for Estupinan, who has a ‘for sale’ sign on his back and a few suitors in the Premier League. On the right, both Saelemaekers (I’m classing him as a defender, considering him a fifth man, but he could slot in among the midfielders or forwards) and Athekame are expected to stay, although Milan are keeping a close eye on the fifth men.

The feeling is that a fifth player could be on the way, possibly someone capable of playing on both flanks and perhaps even an Italian. Names? It’s too early to mention any, though there has been talk of Bellanova, and the Spinazzola situation is being monitored from afar, but no contact has been made yet.

The real investment will be in a centre-back, Max Allegri’s specific request. An experienced centre-back, capable of leading the defence and who, ideally, knows the Italian league. Gila is popular in Italy, and sporting director Tare is very keen on him, but players abroad (in the Premier League and Bundesliga) are also being monitored. Will Max get his wish?

Midfield:

One name stands out above all others: Leon Goretzka. The German, who is highly regarded by Max Allegri – as we have already mentioned here – has already received initial approaches from the Rossoneri. Two meetings have taken place with his entourage in an attempt to get ahead of the competition (Juve, Atlético and others), with a longer contract on offer than the others: a four-year deal worth €4.5 million, as well as a leadership role. Will that be enough to convince Leon? We may find out sooner than we think, but in the meantime the Champions League requirement remains, because it’s important to be clear with the fans – and I want to be clear – without a place in Europe’s top competition, they’ll be more like kittens than Leon.

He shouldn’t be the only new signing; alongside an experienced player, a dynamic youngster could also arrive, though this will also depend on who leaves. Speaking of which, Loftus-Cheek is on the list of players set to leave. The situation is different for Fofana, who won’t necessarily be let go, but who is certainly among those with the highest market value. There was already interest from Turkey last summer, with Galatasaray showing strong interest, though this failed to impress the Frenchman. At the end of the season, any offers will be carefully considered by Milan.

Samuele Ricci is set to stay; Ardon Jashari faces a similar fate but the situation is different for him. The Swiss player has had a season that was certainly not to his satisfaction; he will need to take stock, but there is a belief that he will get another chance to play for the Rossoneri next season, starting from the beginning, taking part in pre-season training and, hopefully, staying injury-free.

Attack:

Will Milan finally have a striker ‘worthy of Milan’? Will the Rossoneri finally, after countless years, have the top scorer in Serie A again? The number 9 issue has been the talk of the town at Casa Milan for years now. An unsolved problem? Perhaps only partially so in Giroud’s time, but for far too long now, Milan have lacked a proper centre-forward capable of making the difference and pulling their leg when needed. But let’s take it one step at a time: who’s staying? Well, that’s where it gets really tricky.

The Leao situation is undoubtedly the trickiest. The boos have taken their toll on Leao, but that doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be sold. Milan will consider any offer – no player is untouchable, not even Rafa – but the club has no intention of selling him off cheaply. We’ll see at the end of the season; the World Cup could give things a boost. Is this the end of the road? Perhaps, but only if the right offer comes along. And this applies to all the forwards to some extent: Fullkrug won’t be bought outright, Nkunku will be sold but without a loss, which means… he might well end up staying. And the others? There’s no point in speculating now; Gimenez could leave if an offer comes in, whilst Pulisic is still weighed down by his contract situation and the slump in his performances in the second half of the season. Could he leave? If the right offers come in, as always, yes, but the contractual situation will also need to be assessed. His contract expires in 2027, with an option for Milan to extend it to 2028, and a couple of Premier League clubs are monitoring the situation.

Generally speaking, the feeling is that the real ‘revolution’ could well lie in the attacking line-up, although there are still too many unknowns at this stage. Who will be the manager? And if Max stays, will he stick with the 3-5-2 or switch to a 4-3-3? Because that makes all the difference in the world. And depending on who leaves, two strikers could be on their way in. The candidates? We’ve updated you on Lewandowski, currently torn between Barça and MLS; the situation with Vlahovic, who is negotiating a contract renewal with Juve, remains to be seen; Moise Kean is still in the mix but doesn’t fully convince. So what now? So it will take a bit more time to identify the name. From Goncalo Ramos to a thousand others, anyone could be a candidate. Milan are looking around, aware that they can no longer afford to get it wrong up front. Perhaps. Let’s hope so.

https://milanvibes.it/calciomercato-milan-goretzka-gila-leao-pulisic-vlahovic-news/