In the afternoon on Sky Sport 24, the well-known football transfer expert Luca Marchetti discussed the future of the AC Milan bench. Here are his statements:
"The leading candidate for the Rossoneri bench now is Conceiçao, with whom discussions and in-depth talks have taken place, much like they did for Lopetegui before. In reality, they reached the final stage, with the contract ready to be signed, but it hasn't been officially confirmed yet, even though there was agreement on everything and the technical side liked him. Conceiçao is a coach who fits the profile that Milan is looking for, as does Fonseca. They are both Portuguese, perhaps it's a coincidence, but they are two coaches who, throughout their careers, with different paths—Fonseca more aesthetic, Conceiçao perhaps more practical—have combined what Milan is seeking in a coach today. Today they are looking for a coach who is certainly young, with a "modern" mindset, who can be very close to the ownership's ideas, so even in terms of communication, always moving together in the same direction, who knows how to, in some way, invest, and therefore make the club's investments profitable, aiming to win while also valuing those players. Why Portuguese coaches? Because they know how to do it? Because the Portuguese league has been, before the Italian league, a transition league, where players were discovered to then be sold. Today Italy might be somewhat of a higher level, but still a transition league. You take young, talented players, or good players, try to integrate them into your context, try to win with them, and then hope that a Premier League club comes and buys them for 100 million euros."
Marchetti then continued to talk about Conceicao and Fonseca:
"Conceiçao has won a lot in Portugal in recent years. There are players who have emerged from Porto, which is a club that knows how to sell. The same goes for Fonseca. Maybe he has won less, but it's no coincidence that Lille is one of those teams that has made Transfermarket their core business. A detail not to be underestimated: Lille is a club that revolves around Elliot, just like Milan has. And today, a good part of Milan's Board of Directors can also be traced back to the old ownership. So, he's a coach, a professional (Fonseca), whom I know very well, and all they have to do is pick up the phone and get to know him right away."
