Mercato Rossonero: Milan Transfer Activity Inside Out

Diego Lopez to Besiktas is no longer possible. The goalkeeper asked for €5m/year from the Turkish club [Sky].

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ES wrote:Diego Lopez to Besiktas is no longer possible. The goalkeeper asked for €5m/year from the Turkish club [Sky].

Good . Great . By all means , Diego must stay .

I know it will be difficult to keep him at the bench for much longer with his wages , but Donnarumma has and should continue to learn a lot from Diego every day . Now if there comes a really good offer for him i can't reasonably hold him a grudge either , but it would be somewhat of an issue for Milan if he left now , i don't get why they are so reckless . Unless his wages is that much of a problem , or he can't wait to leave , anything happens to Donnarumma and we will be in very serious trouble. Can't really expect Abbiati to see through a string of games with equal performances to Gigi and Diego .

I hope he stays until the summer for our sake . Then he can of course leave when he gets an offer he likes . I am afraid to move on with Abbiati as our 2nd option for the entire 2nd half of the season .

As for Luiz Adriano .. after reading some more.

Meh . I am still disappointed that deal didn't go through , we don't really need him anyway and we will never get the chance to sell him for 14m again. He'll never form a good partnership with Bacca because they are incompatible , and all the others are much better choices next to Bacca . Solely as back up to Bacca no problemo , probably our best bet as things stand.. However , that's way too little for someone we pay this kind of wages . We're talking like 5 games here at most , Bacca will easily start all the rest by default , if not for injury .

That said , can't blame him if what he said is true . It doesn't change the high probability he may well turn out to be useless to us now and go on to earn high wages . He wasn't considered as a regular with Niang playing in front of him , i don't know of what use to us he can possible be anymore , with all of Menez , Niang , Balotelli and Boateng to be used before him next to Bacca. He's the best one to be Bacca's main back up to start a game , however that will be like for 5 games at most . Because other than that , all of Boateng , Menez , Balotelli and Niang are ahead of him in the pecking order. It's frankly too much to have in attack , truly ATTACCARE! once more .. unless Menez is gonna be used as 10 lel ? This January has been messy .

As far as i am concerned , he may as well go on holidays right now tbh. I don't necessarily mind him , but yeah , if all goes well with Menez , Balotelli and Boateng , he may as well pack his bags and take the next plane to the Caribbean Islands , can't even bench Niang .

Only redeemable scenario i can consider... Boateng and Balotelli could always leave in the summer , even though early to say yet , but even in that case , you can bet there will be new attaccare for next season too . So i don't know what else to say about Luiz . I don't think he has a future at Milan , not as things stand .

Rejoice fellow Milanisti. Cerci to Genoa is official!

Last we'll see of that shithead, thank f*ck

Inb4 he reclaims his Torino form and rips up the league ala Matri, Niang, etc

He might very well do that. IMO he is the kind of player that is built for low - mid table teams and likely will do alright with Genoa.

Well said Il Diavolo . It's no secret actually , that's exactly what Torino's president , or was it the coach ? , had said about him not too long ago . Talked about how he doesn't push himself to stay on top of his game and that a big club won't show the same patience as they did . Whatever , good luck to him , not our issue anymore .

Since Cerci left , let's review a brief case by case on other potentially departing players and the possibility of them leaving either during January , or in the summer .

Nocerino

Probably next in line . He has received many offers , wants to stay in Italy . One hand i want him to leave so he can free up space for a new midfielder , then again i fear that his departure will mean exactly that. I cannot possibly trust Galliani , i am honestly scared he will just sign new fodder . That aside , it is well past time he finds his new team and i believe he understands this , to be frank if he wastes any more time on the bench he risks getting less money in the summer , so i remain slightly hopeful he will leave now while he still got decent offers , Serie A and what not. Won't hold my breath , but it's a real possibility at least.

Poli

Some rumors about Juventus lately , lol . I don't think he will leave in January , nevertheless he looks set to leave Milan in the summer. He's at an age where he wants , and must , be playing consistently. He couldn't make it at Milan and has been made abundantly clear we do not need him . Although it can't be excluded , there's admittedly little chance in January. Summer? Quite likely , if not a certainty . If i were him i'd have handed over a transfer request already , he's looking at 2-3 appearances till the season is over , let alone we'll probably sign new midfielders in the summer too. His agent was in talks with Galliani . Rumors came after that meeting actually . We can safely assume Poli's side isn't satisfied and will certainly look at options as they arrive . I'd say.. 5% chance he leaves now , if not , 100% in the summer . His time with Milan is coming to an end , be it now or in the summer . One summer too late.

De Jong

Rumors about LA Galaxy . I am not sure if he would accept such a turn in his career right now. Whatever it is , i am convinced De Jong will leave in the summer , not in January , since he will receive more offers then . His recent comments put any doubts i had to rest , he's not thinking about leaving right now and wants to see the season through . I do think he will 100% leave in the summer . He doesn't strike me as someone who only wants a good paycheck , he'll surely want to play more than 5 games a season . I am not worried about him finding a new team , since he will go for a fee like 3m at most and nevertheless he can be a positive signing under the correct circumstances on the pitch . By all means he's quite the bargain for clubs with limited budget .

Honda

I don't like him as a player and anyone with a set of eyes can see he's the definition of average , and when it comes to starting games for Milan , he simply isn't what we need. If you ask me , he's mainly bench material even for this Milan and if it wasn't for Cerci fkn up so gloriously , he would have well remained bench material . Actually , once Boateng is ready that's exactly what he will be once more. That said , i deeply respect his strong willed character , his mentality , his commitment and professionalism . I know many of our players benefited from his attitude and i can't thank him enough for it. Obviously he isn't going to leave now , nor should he leave before the fodder do. But when for the third summer in a row Milan will get new players to start over him, i think he will finally realize it's time to say goodbyes , despite all his admirable intentions and effort .  And with rumors of Vasquez in the summer and all the forwards we got (or some new midfielders we will quite likely get), i think the chances are higher than ever before that he will also leave in the summer . It's unfortunate that i can't speak better of him , going by character and even certain performances he doesn't deserve it , but Milan does deserve better . The summer will be a perfect opportunity for him to find a good team and i don't doubt he will have enough options to choose from . Frankly , Honda doesn't even need replacing . Promote Locatelli , the 18 year old CM who has impressed everyone in the club to take his locker in the dressing room . You ask me , Locatelli or Honda , they're both looking at the same playing time at Milan next season , may as well have Locatelli .

Mexes and Zapata

100% chance one of them , quite likely Mexes , will be gone in the summer . Less than that in January , i fear. If you ask me , i don't think there is any club willing to pay a fee for soon to be 34 year old Mexes , even a tiny little one , when they can have him for free in the summer . If Milan agreed to a fee of 1m at most , or simply give him for nothing , only then i can see him leaving right now. As for Zapata , read some rumors that he had rejected Stuttgart and Hoffenheim . Frankly , with Bacca around , i am reluctant to say he will leave for sure in the summer , even if i badly want it to happen . I am afraid Galliani being who he is , may actually renew his contract . I am scared that's what will happen , hopefully Zapata wants to gtfo and actually get to play somewhere else. Did i say i am scared he will renew ? Yeah. I wouldn't lose any sleep if he just sits on the bench , but then again , when he does play , i always lose a little sleep from what i see from him. I think he was never closer to an exit , but i am afraid of what Galliani may do .

El Shaarawy

Very close to Roma , 2m loan fee , with an option to buy for 13m . Doesn't seem to me that Roma will get both Perotti and El Shaarawy and they're really close to SES . I think this might make Milan move for Perotti , since i very much doubt our chances of getting the Ajax lad, El Ghazi . Ajax won't sell in January for anything less than 15m , which we simply won't pay , especially after what happened with Luiz . Loan with option to buy Perotti is , by every single angle you want to look at it , the more Galliani thing to do . I very much expect it really , especially if Roma drop their interest after El Shaarawy.

SES to Roma official. Hope he does well tbh, even if its for a rival.

Leicester has started negotiations with Milan for Niang, the figure is 16m (Sky)

Now that's an interesting one...

Wouldn't be completely against it if we use the money for a RW or CM, both of which we badly badly need. And we have Balo, Bacca, Adriano, and Menez for two forward spots, so its not like we're that desperate for Niang.

Should ask for at least 20-25m for him. Not saying he's worth that much, but epl teams frequently spend more on players of similar talent.

Probably shouldn't sell him at all tho honestly. The kid has talent and is likely to improve in the coming years. I can't see him making it big but he could develop into a solid player, or one worth more than 16m at least

I don't think it's that simple. PL clubs that can overspend paying 20-25m for Niang already have better forwards. And they certainly prefer to overspend within PL when they can help it . Leicester doesn't have that kind of money to spend yet . And of course , Leicester also has better forwards , so it's kinda big enough they are reportedly willing to pay even 16m euros . Even going by that price , he will be like their most expensive transfer ever . Don't think you can squeeze Leicester in particular for more than that. They are most certainly , if this is true , paying to the best of their current ability . Come next season they may have more to spend , right now that is the best we can hope to get from that club in particular.

One dude Ulloa was reportedly their most expensive ever with 7.5m pounds , yes they are a PL club and all , yet not all of them can/will pay that big . Had they already sold Vardy or Mahrez maybe we could ask them for such a price , don't think we can expect much more from Niang right now though.

Imo 16m euros for Niang is very good indeed . Niang finally showed some actual promise this season , so i am not surprised to see a team willing to pay a respectable sum for him . Frankly right now , if they are indeed offering 16m , Milan should and will probably say yes . But regardless of where anyone stands , Niang must also agree to the transfer. So i am not gonna hold my breath about it. I am fine with any outcome , as far as they are indeed offering the reported 16m euros.

Di Marzio wrote:The future of striker M'Baye Niang looks to be in Milan after he rejected an offer to join Leicester City. With a deal of around €16 million on the table, the player spent last night contemplating his future and has decided to remain at the Rossoneri. For now, Niang remains at the disposal of Sinisa Mihajlovic.

Like i expected , Niang has reportedly rejected Leicester's offer .

I must say ; This must have been Niang's 3rd time committing to the club . After both his loans he wanted only Milan and now this. Maybe it's not that commendable because it's just Niang , but for someone like me who criticized him a lot about attitude and mentality , i can't but say this is very positive . I am really pleased with how committed he is . Don't know if he genuinely wants to become a big player with us , or he just thinks he will be playing a lot here , nevertheless the desire is there .

I don't mind Niang staying at all , but we all mustn't forget which club we support all this time. It's the club where attaccare is as important as signing champions and having Champions League DNA . Meaning , every single season , and i mean every single one for as long as i can remember , we get at least 2 new forwards each season . That's like the absolute least added attaccare material every season .

You make your own conclusions about that .

Surprised he would reject it tbh. 5 years ago it would make sense, but now we're the minnows and Leicester are the big club with more money and far more hopes for success. Unless as you said Dante the motivation was playing time.

In any case, he's staying now, I hope his commitment translates into development, because God knows we need him to improve.

Agreed by the ironical change of fortunes , it's indeed that . And i think it's a bit of both , if i had to say , probably more about playing time than anything else. I have no doubts he wants to become important for Milan , yet in the end , playing time must be there for anything else to happen .

As for his development .. We sure do need him to be better and he has been better than ever this season. Physically , mentally , tactically , he even scores now . Who would have guessed

But yeah i get what you mean by that. I think that will be more difficult , i don't think the environment or the overall quality in this Milan are going to make it easier for him . I am pleased he at least developed from being totally overrated PES/FIFA legend , to an actually working player .

TBH , i don't even consider him as 'young talent' anymore. He's had playing time and experiences galore by now . Sure he's still young enough , but we should be specific about our expectations now.

Although my opinion about him has indeed really improved , it also has to be said .. Players who were given more or less the playing time he got in his years so far , became really important players even by his current age , for Milan or elsewhere . Frankly , there's been noticeable improvement but nothing even remotely close from what you would have seen from any true elite talent , or of the best around .

So finally , while i certainly expect him to keep getting better and better with time , i am sorry to say that my past overall opinion still hasn't changed . Niang is no top talent , nowhere near close to Ballon o Dor talent or new Henry and these things people used to say some years ago , all based on hype because he was young , or/and because of PES/FIFA/FM . He can become a good player no doubt , but imho he will never even come close to such levels .

Frankly i am glad about his current progress and i am sure he will develop even further , nevertheless there's a certain ceiling for Niang . I'll give you the best analogy that comes to mind right now ; he was well on the path of becoming what Bojan turned out to be for Barcelona. Right now he's on the path of becoming a Bartra , let's say , and his absolute ceiling is a Pedro , a reliable team player who will be relevant for a time. If you ask me at least.

For anyone who sees beyond the fog of "potential" , it's plain obvious he'll never be a Busquets for Milan , or in other words one of the best in the world . Balotelli and Pato were already better players than him at 17 and quite honestly , i doubt if he can be as good as they were on their best day so far , let alone more.

Sorry for the long post. Why i said that ? Frankly because he will be sold in the coming years , once it becomes clear he wasn't what we expected , but he will still want to be a regular here. So i am trying to keep a positive approach about Niang , he's earning it anyway , but i'd have to be mad to get attached to Niang . He literally has the world to prove , and to me it's almost certain he won't , for that matter.

Nigel De Jong is on the verge of completing a move to LA Galaxy, according to Sky Italia.

Well , Sinisa was trying him as a CB in training , anyone can see this collaboration has to end for the good of everyone involved . Truth is , time was up already by last summer , but he was renewed .

I hope he accepts , Jose Mauri is a fine replacement for De Jong. That said , i am not that confident that he will , doesn't seem he wants to leave during January . I hope he does though , he still can play a lot elsewhere and we don't really have particular need for him anymore .

Along with Nocerino , he's not called up for the derby tomorrow .

Reports by La Stampa and Calciomercato suggest that Milan is still seeking to sell Luiz Adriano and that Balotelli won't be signed in the summer .

Regardless of the sources , i do believe both are correct . I am actually dead certain Luiz will be sold either now or in the summer . And how could it be otherwise , we need our new attaccare material for next season as well , any less than 2 new strikers a season is unfathomable for this club .

That said , in these two particular cases , i can't really disagree with it. By all means bring 2 new forwards , or even better , a great one next to Bacca . Preferably Ibra , even 35 years old Ibrahimovic by October 3 would still manage twice as much as them combined next season.

Bacca , Ibrahimovic , Niang and if he's recovered well Menez , looks just fine and enough to me for next season tbh . Just fine.

Better spend all we've got on dat midfield and a new CB , by all means.

I'm skeptical of Ibra after last summer's fiasco, heck, i'm skeptical about any good to great player what with the whole Dani Alves saga, Witsel rumors, etc. Even Vazquez the other day has said that he hopes to play alongside Dybala again, if that isn't a tapping-up request then i don't know what is

oh i think the exact same mind you . Just saying , ideally speaking that's what we should do .

Otherwise if you want me to talk strictly , one will be Pavoletti to replace Balotelli and some other risk based on hunch by Galliani to replace Luiz . That's the more Galliani thing to do .

That said , though. If we ever decided we would spend big again , let's assume. We can get great players . It would just cost us a lot . Probably like 200m . But we could have our share if we wanted it to be so .

Will we? Absolutely not , but specifically in Ibra's case , he will be free in the summer and soon to be 35 year old. We could afford him for a while at least. And if by any chance we got someone like Ibra , other good players would be more willing to come. Would certainly refresh our rather sad image for a start.

Truth is if we wish to play in Europe again we need great players to play for Milan again , it will happen this way or the other , one day .. I would personally start with Ibra because it would lay foundations , even if i don't have faith in the management to plan accordingly anymore .

You just know Galliani is already fapping to Pavoletti right now , so meh .

OFFICIAL: Nigel De Jong terminates his contract with Milan by mutual consent.

Galliani the master seller

Good luck to De Jong . He was always an example of a professional at Milan , always tried to give his best , always tried to stay at his best . My personal connection with him was two fold , first i found him critically important when he came , then in 13-14 i begun having a lot of doubts about him , then in 14-15 i didn't want to watch him play for us anymore .

Nonetheless , my biggest qualm with him was that we didn't need a player like him as a regular in front of the defense . Or rather ; we needed someone that can both win the ball back and pass it anywhere . He was always very good at the former , but with the later he was always found lacking. Even then , he was actually always good in possession , it's just he limited our play with his always safe passing and made us incredibly predictable . In games that wasn't a factor , he was always very very good.

Although he was never my kind of player , i respect him dearly for the professional he was and how connected he was with Milan . I thought he would leave in the summer , tbh contract termination kinda makes me think i was correct on this one , but in any case , it's all for the best.

De Jong served Milan as best he could and in the end , that's what i've always asked from our players. Can't say i've been pleased on the pitch for a long time now from him , but with the personality De Jong , i have not the slightest issue .

Best of luck to him !

Grazie.

Kinda sad to see him go but the move makes a lot of sense for both parties given that there is no need for a player like him in the current system. Lots of respect for giving his all on the field and always being extremely professional, even after he was benched.

0 reinforcements makes cl football basically impossible.

thanks galliani