From Dida to Sebastiano Rossi, from Enrico Albertosi to Lorenzo Buffon, AC Milan have been blessed with some incredible goalkeepers over the past century. For a while, it seemed that Mike Maignan would become their next legendary shot-stopper and mark an era at the San Siro. However, just four years after his arrival, Maignan could very well be on his way out.
After developing in Paris Saint-Germain's academy, Maignan made the move to Lille in 2015, where he quickly became a regular between the sticks and replaced Nigerian veteran Vincent Enyeama in goal. Maignan quickly emerged as one of the finest goalkeepers in France, winning the 2018/19 Ligue 1 Goalkeeper of the Year award as Lille finished second to PSG after conceding just 30 goals, making 17 clean sheets and saving 233 shots and three penalties.
Two years later, Maignan would deliver a season for the ages as Lille claimed their first league title in a decade, ending PSG's run of three straight championships. He kept 21 clean sheets, one short of the league record, but none more important than his clean sheet on April 3 as Lille beat PSG 1-0 at the Parc de Princes and leapfrogged Les Parisiens to the top of the table. They retained their advantage for the rest of the campaign and ended up edging PSG to the title on the final day.
As a result of their disappointing campaign, PSG embarked on an ambitious transfer window that saw Lionel Messi, Achraf Hakimi, Sergio Ramos, Nuno Mendes and Georginio Wijnaldum head to the French capital. They also signed Gianluigi Donnarumma, who left his boyhood club Milan on a free transfer. Milan needed to find a capable successor in goal, and they decided to splurge €15 million on Maignan and tie him down to a five-year contract.
Maignan didn't take long to make that look like a bargain...
He showcased impeccable reflexes, an imposing physical presence, and an intangible leadership quality that enabled him to organize the backline and keep them focused on the task at hand. One year after guiding Lille back to the promised land, Maignan did the exact same in Italy and guided Milan to their first Scudetto in 11 years.
The Frenchman was named the Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year and followed that up with another superb campaign in 2022/23 as Milan reached the doorstep of the UEFA Champions League Final. Having made it to the Serie A Team of the Year in each of his first two seasons in Italy, Maignan was quickly becoming a fan favorite in Milan and earned the nickname 'Magic Mike.'
He not only made crucial saves at the most important important moments, but he also excelled at playing out from the back and instigating counter-attacks with long balls, far exceeding Donnarumma in his ability in possession. Moreover, his overpowering physique and confidence allowed him to command his penalty area and claim crosses so as to ease the burden on his outfield players.
Maignan combined speed of movement with speed of mind, capable of spotting when the opposition had broken Milan's offside trap and exploited their defensive positioning and immediately leaving his line to snuff out opposing chances. This enabled Milan to execute a high line and minimize their potential danger of coneding a goal from a counter-attack.
However, there has always been one criticism levelled at Maignan: his injury record. Since arriving at Milan in 2021, Maignan has missed 257 days due to injury and 53 matches for club and country. It is an astronomical figure for a goalkeeper, and as the saying goes, the best availability is ability. Nonetheless, he's managed to stay fit this season, missing just one match due to injury.
But whilst Maignan's managed to turn his injury record around, his performances have gone the other way. Maignan took a step back in his form in 2023/24 as Milan finished as runners-up, 19 points behind Inter, but he's fared even worse in 2024/25, a season that has seen Milan go off the rails. The Rossoneri sit ninth in the league table, they have been eliminated from the UEFA Champions League by Feyenoord, and they are in danger of failing to qualify for Europe for the first time in nine years.
Similarly to ex-Australia goalkeeper Mark Bosnich, who helped Aston Villa end a 13-year trophy drought in 1994, Maignan has been able to lead not one but two clubs back to the promised land. And yet, similarly to Bosnich, Maignan has also been called into question for being allegedly overweight.
According to Italian journal La Repubblica, Milan coach Sérgio Conceição believes that Maignan is overweight. Milan players are forced to weigh themselves every day and undergo various health tests such as analyzing the quality of their sleep, and Maignan as well as several other members are reportedly clocking in at over 90 kilograms.
This could very well be the difference that has caused Maignan to drop off from his level in the previous years. In 2021/22, Maignan ranked in the 95th percentile amongst goalkeepers for Post-shot expected goals (PSxG) minus goals allowed (GA), which measures how many goals a goalkeeper conceded that were expected to be scored. Three years later, he's ranking in the 33rd percentile.
In the Scudetto-winning campaign, Maignan was a rock between the sticks and delivered a mind-boggling 92% save percentage. Three years later, Maignan is at a pitiful 47%. Maignan, who was recently appointed as Milan's new captain following Davide Calabria's departure, is finally starting to be a point of vulnerability than a point of strength.
With the Rossoneri set to miss out on top four, it's clear that Milan will be undertaking a summer rebuild, and Maignan could be one of the first on the chopping block. His contract is set to expire in 2026, and he's set to turn 30 in the summer. It seems his best days could be in the rearview mirror, and as such, Milan may decide to cash in rather than give him a new deal.
Maignan is still France's starting goalkeeper, having taken the reins from Hugo Lloris following his retirement after the 2022 FIFA World Cup. However, his days as Milan's starting goalkeeper could very well be reaching an abrupt conclusion.
