Milan is one step away from signing Santiago Gimenez, and to acquire the Feyenoord striker, they have given the green light for Alvaro Morata’s departure.
The Spaniard is set to join Galatasaray on loan with an option to buy (not an obligation). His exit, however, is contingent on the Mexican’s arrival at Milanello.
The former Atletico Madrid forward has agreed to the move to Istanbul because he realizes that he is not untouchable for Conceição and does not want to sit on the bench. If Galatasaray exercises the buy option, including bonuses and the loan fee, Morata would generate a total of €15 million, writes La Gazzetta dello Sport in this morning's print edition.
But back to Santiago Gimenez...
Yesterday, the Dutch club’s executives did not allow their Rossoneri counterparts to celebrate their second signing of the winter transfer window after Kyle Walker. Nonetheless, the deal is close, and a (positive) response may have arrived overnight, as CEO Furlani left the club headquarters around 11 PM CET with his laptop.
Otherwise, negotiations will resume today, with Milan determined to finalise the deal. Feyenoord has understood that the Rossoneri are desperate to sign Gimenez and is trying to extract as much money as possible. Their asking price is now around 35 million euros, including bonuses, and the gap is narrowing.
Milan’s transfer business, however, will not stop with this deal.
Camarda has been approved for an 18-month loan move to Monza, and now the club’s focus is on bringing Joao Felix to Italy.
Gimenez’s transfer to the Rossoneri has turned into a chess match. The Dutch club, which could potentially face Milan in the Champions League playoffs, originally wanted to keep him until June but now recognizes that the player expects them to honour the promise of a transfer made last summer. Keeping him against his will could be risky—Santiago wants Serie A and reiterated it again yesterday through his agent, Rafaela Pimenta.
Milan has surpassed the 30 million euros mark, including bonuses, but has yet to receive the final approval.
The sticking point is the fixed portion of the offer, which is still not deemed “right.” Milan initially offered 20 million euros, later increasing it to 25 million euros, but it remains insufficient because some of the proposed bonuses (linked to team trophies and individual goals or assists) are considered difficult to achieve. As of now, there is no resale percentage included in the deal. Feyenoord does not plan to seek a replacement, as they already have Ueda and Carranza in-house.
The transfer deadline, set for Monday at midnight, is still relatively distant, but Milan does not want to wait until the last day.
Santiago Gimenez suffered an adductor injury on Wednesday in Lille, though it is not considered serious. Medical tests are scheduled for today. In the Netherlands, some believe that if the deal goes through, he could be available for the derby (highly unlikely, as he is not at peak fitness and there are procedural delays for medicals, registration, and the arrival of the transfer certificate). Otherwise, he could feature in Feyenoord’s crucial match against Ajax on Sunday.
And what does Gimenez himself think? Yesterday, he posted a Bible verse on Instagram:
"Be on guard! Be alert and pray! You do not know when that time will come."
Read through a transfer market lens, it is another clue about his desire to join Milan.
If the Gimenez deal falls through, or even as a future alternative, Milan will target Lucca from Udinese. There has already been contact with the Pozzo-owned club.
AC Milan's David Datro Fofana paves the way for Joao Felix?
Then there’s the Joao Felix situation. The Portuguese forward wants to leave Chelsea to be coached by Sergio Conceição, and his agent Jorge Mendes is pushing for the move to happen.
With Chelsea recalling David Datro Fofana from his loan at Göztepe, they now have the flexibility to send Joao Felix on a six-month loan outside England.
It is now up to Milan to assess whether they can fit him into their squad. After registering Walker and Gimenez for the Champions League, Joao Felix would be the third and final permitted squad change. Okafor would be the player sacrificed to make room for him.
