It has been a rough few days to be an AC Milan supporter. After kicking off Max Allegri's second spell in charge with a 2-0 win against second-tier Bari in the Coppa Italia, Milan fell behind within a half-hour against newly promoted Cremonese. Strahinja Pavlovic leveled proceedings before halftime, but Federico Bonazzoli would restore the visitors' lead at the hour-mark to secure a 2-1 win for Cremonese.
To add insult to injury, Milan have reportedly failed in their mission to sign Nigerian striker Victor Boniface from Bayer Leverkusen. According to German outlets, Milan decided against signing him on loan after uncovering issues with his right knee during the medicals. It's why, after negotiating a loan deal with a €30m purchase option for the 24-year-old striker, Milan decided to nix the deal.
There were plenty of reasons for excitement for the Rossoneri regarding this deal. Boniface excelled for Bayer Leverkusen in his debut season, racking up 31 goal contributions in 34 matches en route to an undefeated domestic double. However, he has since fallen down the pecking order at Leverkusen, prompting him to seek new pastures.
The onus is now on Milan to find a new center forward who can challenge Santiago Gimenez for the starting spot. Whilst Rasmus Hojlund appears to be closing in on a transfer to Napoli, there are still plenty of alternatives for Il Diavolo to consider. However, it seems that they've zeroed in on Conrad Harder, who showed signs of promise whilst deputizing as Viktor Gyokeres' backup striker at Sporting last season.
The young Dane impressed at Norsdjaelland, eventually breaking into the first team before earning a transfer to Sporting in the summer of 2024. Despite spending most of his time being used off the bench, Reed impressed for Sporting in their domestic double, racking up 13 goals and 10 assists in 54 matches. Similarly to Hugo Perez, Harder thrived at holding his run until the last second before spotting an inch of space and beating his defender to the ball.
Whilst he needs to improve in possession, Harder is nevertheless a cold-blooded killer in the final third who has the knowhow and poise to pick his pocket and carve out an inch-perfect shot into the back of the net. And at 20 years of age, he only shows signs of improvement. Does he have what it takes to justify their reported €30m outlay and become Milan's next legendary striker?
