It was on June 22nd when Inter announced that the former AC Milan player, Hakan Calhanoglu, had signed with them on a deal that would tie him to the black and blue side of the city until June 2024. The Turkish attacking midfielder did not reach an agreement with the Rossoneri for an extension and a door opened to him to earn more at Inter as they were looking for someone to replace Christian Eriksen after his unfortunate collapse in the Euros competition.
The former Rossoneri number 10 was enthusiastic about making the move from Il Diavolo to the Nerazzurri. His first words upon making the switch were to Inter TV: "It’s a great feeling. Inter is a great club with great fans. You know what it means for me to arrive here, I’m very happy and content."
Then, eyes were turned to AC Milan's management to see what the next move should be with Nikola Vlasic (who moved to Premier League side West Ham) among other players being linked to fill the void left by the Turk.
In that summer, Paolo Maldini and Frederic Massara spent around 75 million euros, between loan fees, buy-options and straight transfers with most of the time, focus and resources dedicated to the deals with Brescia and Chelsea for Sandro Tonali, Fikayo Tomori and Olivier Giroud without forgetting their wages.
The playmaker role, though, remained a difficult task, with few resources left to use in the market session, it was then decided at the Casa Milan offices of Paolo Maldini, Frederic Massara and Ivan Gazidis that the club were going to bet on Real Madrid loanee Brahim Diaz who was granted the number 10 shirt before also signing Junior Messias, a 30-year-old Brazilian from Crotone who mainly plays as a right-winger but can also act as an attacking midfielder.
"I love this club", said Brahim Diaz when he was signed once again by the Rossoneri directors in the summer, "21 is a number that I like very much, but it is equally true that I have always liked 10 too: it is a unique number in the history of Milan. I know it is heavy and requires great responsibility for the value that Milan has and for its colours. I will give my best for the fans."
Brahim Diaz' season vs Hakan Calhanoglu
In terms of numbers and performance on the field, Brahim Diaz did start well. He was able to score goals, provide assists, penetrate a lot of space and create chances for his teammates by leading counter-attacks. He has been able to score 4 goals and make 4 assists this term. As for Hakan Calhanoglu, on the other side of the city, he managed to grab himself a starting position by gradually earning the trust of Simone Inzaghi. In terms of numbers and performances, he has the better statistics with 6 goals and 9 assists to his name in 23 Serie A appearances.
In the Spaniard's case, he seemed to slow down and never managed to regain the trust of the fans who still have high hopes for him. The former Manchester City talent has not been able to score a goal for the red and black faithful since the away win against Spezia on September 9th 2021.
Now, many more fans are now asking themselves, and are even claiming, that the club directors should have signed a new playmaker in addition to Brahim Diaz to replace the Turkish star. Even in the winter's transfer window, the Men's First Team did not see any addition except for 18-year-old Marko Lazetic's arrival to bolster the centre-forward position.
Daniel Maldini, Paolo's son, stayed put despite SPAL pushing to sign him on loan but, except for a header goal against Spezia, he never was able to show his true qualities and worth to make Pioli use him more frequently in lieu of Brahim Diaz.
Instead, coach Pioli had to do without a real attacking midfielder in his usual 4-2-3-1 module at some times with Franck Kessié or Rade Krunic being deployed in that position.
Now, it is clear that the AC Milan side have struggled in many occasions due to the lack of a player who would act as the number 10 that links the ball to the attacking area and dish out important assists and score goals. In a season where the team is in Scudetto contention, a capable playmaker should always be a necessity and a pillar.
For now, though, the hope is that Brahim Diaz would finally return to his usual form that many have seen at the end of the last season at at the beginning of the current campaign. But in any case, a player with high qualities in that position should arrive in the summer's transfer window as depth is the key to aim for a title and in order to compete at high levels, such as the Champions League football.
