The first month of 2026 has truly flown by, which means we are now also approaching the closing stages of the winter transfer window. A window that Milan opened earlier than anyone else, effectively two days before Christmas with the arrival of Niclas Füllkrug in the city, but then allowed to pass without intervening in other areas of the squad, apart from a few moves aimed at Milan Futuro. The transfer market will close on Monday, February 2 at 8:00 pm, so the question is what Milan should do with less than a week of the window remaining.
Centre-back
At the pre-match press conference ahead of Roma–Milan, Allegri responded to the usual question about the transfer market by saying: “Either we improve the squad or we stay as we are.” It may sound like a banal statement, but in reality it conveys an important message: Milan will not sign players just for the sake of it, only those who raise the overall quality of the squad. From this perspective, the central defence department, without taking anything away from the performances of Gabbia, Pavlovic, Tomori and De Winter, would also need a fifth centre-back who is immediately ready and able to create additional competition within the unit. At the moment, that fifth option is Odogu, who still does not seem ready to be thrown into the fray. With a back three, in this case, beyond the issue of quality, there is also the question of quantity.
Wing-back chapter:
As things stand, Milan have four wide players. On the right there is Alexis Saelemaekers, who after Maignan is the most-used player of the Rossoneri’s season and has always been deployed from the first minute, even in matches where he recovered at the last moment, such as the one at the Olimpico. His deputy is Athekame, who is improving when he comes on in the very final minutes to protect a result, but over the long haul, as seen in Rome when he played the entire second half, he struggles more. On the left, there is a Bartesaghi–Estupiñán rotation, with the former having overtaken the South American in the pecking order and clearly offering greater reliability. The quality of the backup options needs to be raised, especially on the right, where Saelemaekers is used heavily and is exposed to flatter, low-energy performances, as happened on Sunday night against the Giallorossi. A player is needed here to raise the overall quality of the squad. With effectively five days left until the end of the market, Milan have not moved throughout the month, will they make a move in the final straight?
Source: Milan News
