What if Mike Maignan's performance is being affected by contract renewal negotiations? The question arises spontaneously, but the feeling is that the French goalkeeper is such a professional that any uncertainties are not attributable to discussions between his entourage and the club to extend and improve the agreement expiring in June 2026, with a salary just below 3 million net, writes Tuttosport in their website.
That being said, the renewal issue is not trivial, especially after AC Milan decided last summer to significantly increase Rafael Leao's salary from 1.5 million euros to 7 million euros, making the Portuguese player by far the highest-paid player in the Rossoneri squad (followed by a group of players at 4 million euros including Theo Hernandez, Ismael Bennacer, and Christian Pulisic).
Mike Maignan, the starting goalkeeper for the French National Team, the clear favorite for the upcoming Euros, logically sees himself as a top player on a global level, so he expects a similar treatment to Leao in order to stay tied to the Rossoneri club.
The initial discussions between the club management and the player's representatives began in the last summer, following Paolo Maldini's dismissal.
Mike Maignan was among the first players contacted by Giorgio Furlani, with the CEO outlining to his agency the projects and economic guidelines of the new management. Clearly, AC Milan considers the goalkeeper a key asset and absolutely does not want to risk reaching summer 2025 without a renewal.
We are still far from that date, but the club's intention is to reach an agreement by the end of the season with Mike Maignan, who has long been a target for many top clubs like Bayern. The Germans are considering "Magic Mike" for after Neuer, and in Monaco, as is well known, there are certainly no financial problems, as they can comfortably guarantee their big players salaries that easily exceed 10 million per season (Kane even earns 25 million euros). It is evident that if Bayern were to offer 80 million euros, Milan would be forced to consider the proposal.
The negotiation, however, between Milan and Maignan is not easy, also because the abolition of the Growth Decree has clearly complicated the negotiations. As mentioned, Maignan's team believes that an extremely important offer is needed for their client, so much so that in recent months there has been talk of a request around 8 million euros.
This is a huge amount, far from the reflections of the management who initially thought of a proposal lower than the 7 million euros received by Rafael Leao.
The fact that after the initial summer approaches an agreement has not yet been reached suggests that there is still a gap between demand and offer.
We are not yet at the stage of being too worried, however, also because Maignan has repeatedly stated that he feels good in Milan and in recent weeks has appreciated the club's support after the events in Udine.