Milan’s transfer window so far has certainly been an unusual one, perhaps a consequence of the total revolution carried out by Gerry Cardinale at the end of last season. It got off to a flying start after a month spent choosing the head coach and management, not without a few missteps: Ramos and Gila arrived for more than €100 million, the striker and defender who had been the club’s priorities. Since then, apart from Diawara, who is a signing for the future, there has been nothing else. Neither incoming nor outgoing. With just two weeks to go before the start of the league season, Milan are now racing against time both to sell players and make new signings.
Whether the market was held back by the club or by Amorim, who wanted to assess all the players up close, ultimately makes little difference: Milan now have to complete an entire transfer window in three weeks, or two if we consider the start of the season. The friendlies played so far, particularly yesterday’s match against Chelsea, have made it abundantly clear that the cycle of several Milan players has effectively come to an end. There are a great many players with their bags packed. The problems are twofold: little time available and the need to find reinforcements suited to Amorim. These are interconnected issues that have left the Rossoneri with their backs against the wall: the risk is that some players will have to be sold at cut-price fees simply to reduce the size of the squad and generate some liquidity, as Tuttosport points out.
AC Milan players with their bags packed
As mentioned, there are genuinely many Milan players who could leave. The first indications may already have come yesterday in Jakarta, with several players not even getting up to warm up: Tomori, Fofana, Athekame, Odogu and also young Alphadjo Cissè could all say goodbye, with the latter two most likely leaving on loan. The English centre-back and the French midfielder have offers from mid-table Premier League clubs or from Turkey. Many others, meanwhile, remain in the balance: Ricci, Estupiñán, Gimenez, Musah, Loftus-Cheek... Then, of course, there is the separate case of Rafael Leao: Gerry Cardinale remains firm in his stance, and the Portuguese winger will not leave for less than €50 million.
