The path that leads Milan to Granit Xhaka is more arduous and complicated than expected. Bayer Leverkusen, which has already lost not only the coach but also three key players from the squad, does not want to part with another important figure on the field and in the dressing room. For this reason, the Rossoneri club—and in particular Igli Tare—will have to go the extra mile to bring the Swiss midfielder to Milanello.
This morning, La Gazzetta dello Sport, outlining the state of the Xhaka-Milan operation, is very clear in summing up the situation. On one side is Milan, which has identified the Swiss captain as one of the experienced reinforcements for a midfield that needs to be rebuilt; on the other side is Bayer Leverkusen, which does not want to let go of the player in order not to further dismantle a team that Ten Hag has inherited already weakened; in the middle is Granit Xhaka himself, who has given his full availability and openness to the transfer to a prestigious club like Milan, to play in a new league such as Serie A.
Igli Tare must work harder to try to land Granit Xhaka:
In recent days, Igli Tare had already been in Germany, but the feeling, according to La Gazzetta, is that he will have to return soon because a negotiation like this—if there’s to be any chance of unlocking it—needs to be carried out face-to-face with the counterpart. Therefore, it’s likely that the Albanian executive will soon move personally to Leverkusen to negotiate the acquisition of the Swiss player: a first offer slightly over 10 million euros was turned down.
The possibility of Malick Thiaw is still alive—not so much for a swap, but more as part of a parallel double operation: the Germans are finalizing Quansah from Liverpool, but it’s possible that the Rossoneri defender remains on their radar, both for squad list reasons and for overall squad depth.
