The 69 goals conceded by Milan in the last season are still a very open and painful wound for both the Rossoneri club and especially for its fans, who saw their team, which was supposed to fight for the Scudetto, finish in eleventh place in the league's best defenses ranking. It is precisely for this reason that the new coach Fonseca's first task will be to address the team's balance, specifically the defensive phase. He will likely be assisted by a reinforcement in this department.
As per what is told by the Italian newspaper, La Gazzetta dello Sport, in this morning's print edition Milan's defence is numerically adequate. However, the departure of Simon Kjaer and the imminent loan move of Marco Pellegrino to Argentina (Independiente) leave a gap that needs to be filled.
It remains to be seen whether this will be with a high-level profile or a player who can comfortably fit into the rotations. What is certain is that from Monday, Fonseca will have all the central defenders available: from Tomori to Gabbia, including Thiaw and Kalulu. The material is good, but last season's performance was poor: this was also due to inadequate physical condition and frequent injuries. Fonseca's work will not only have to be tactical. In any case, it is expected that a central defender will arrive, and the chances would increase significantly if Newcastle actually formalized an irresistible offer for Malick Thiaw. At that point, Milan managers, they would aim for an important profile.
One of these could be the Serbian Strahinja Pavlovic, a central defender born in 2001 from Salzburg and a starter for the Serbian National Team. A player who meets all the physical requirements Milan seeks for this role, particularly being left-footed: physically very structured and powerful, thanks to his 194 centimeters.
The player feels ready for the leap in quality he had to postpone at a younger age with Monaco a few seasons ago. In Austria, he has found himself again, and during the failed European Championship campaign in Germany, he reportedly told his teammates of his intention to move to Serie A. To be honest, he was already close to moving to Italy a few years ago, but everything fell through with Lazio due to failed medical exams.
Today, Pavlovic wants to reclaim Italy. There could be a challenge between Milan and Napoli for him. According to Gazzetta, it would take at least 20 million euros to snatch the Serbian from Salzburg: Milan can rely on the good relations with the Austrians, developed from last year's negotiations for Okafor.
