Mercato Rossonero: Milan Transfer Activity Inside Out

ES wrote:He tends to come off a bit arrogant, maybe even deluded, we haven't even started the season and we're better than Juventus and guaranteed top 3 finish

I am optimistic, though i'd like to guage our team before making inane assertations

I'm sorry ES, I hope I haven't come off as an ass, I didn't come here to troll but actually to discusss. I don't really consider Milan enemies like I do Roma and Inter and even Napoli. For me, Milan has always been a team of class and class players.

I love what you guys are doing and I love the excitement. But I can't really agree with the ratings alongside Juve, I happen to believe Juve is quite strong, possibly better than the last two seasons but that's arguable.

We just bought 9-10 new players. I recognize we have work to do. We need a few more signings too. Communication isn't there yet. These new players don't know each other yet (barring Kessie and Conti). They are also a bit on the young side.

So cohesion will be key... And I think what we have shown already looks promising.

No... we aren't at juve's level when it comes to cohesion and yes that may take time. Perhaps not yet this season.

Say the truth Luca. Admit that you just remembered we signed Kalinic and you p***d out of this.

SERIE ALPHA not ready for Kalinic

also , don't know where you live , but what you need to be apologising for is arguing with Giancarlo this late. Actually discussing seriously with Giancarlo about anything in almost 3 AM where i am

and also pls go with your dominance in Europe the last 5 years , pls don't make it this easy for me

other than that yea ... again it's late here , will say a few things tomorrow

right now i am too busy slipping into my red and black pyjamas with little Kalinics on them and watching totally legal copy of this fine and excellent blockbuster The Mummy , starring top lad Tom Cruise. I already know it's shit but i want to see just how shit it can be

later

Its 5pm here on a Saturday and I'm sitting in a stupid laundromat. Pardon me for being bored. Kalinic? He isn't a real player. Lol.

4-1 losses in CL finals is dominant. I just had to say it.

It's only natural that one should favor the players of their favorite club; we wouldn't qualify as Tifosi otherwise.

I believe in the future of Milan more than that of Juventus, and I need not explain why; one can easily compare the ages of Buffon, Chiellini, Marchisio and Higuain (39, 33, 31 and 30) with those of Donnarumma, Romagnoli, Kessie and Andre Silva (18, 21, 21 and 22) to arrive at my point.

All that said, objectively speaking, we are currently way behind, and it's only fair. When Juve signed strikers for 94m without breaking a milliliter of sweat, we were working hard to get rid of Luiz Adriano to decrease our wage expenditure. Juve's owners gave blank checks to their executives, and Galliani was given 15m to assemble a whole squad. This kept happening for years. Sure as night follows day, there MUST be a difference.

However, Milan aim to replicate that and then some. Once Mr. Li's Chinese investors get the green light to come forward, Milan will be rich beyond imagination. We need at least three years to build a squad, or let's say a CLUB, that can operate like an unstoppable juggernaut both on the field and off it.

It is beyond question that our depth is a joke, as ES also admits, yet I agree unconditionally with Giancarlo that Locatelli and Cutrone are taking giant steps toward stardom, although they're still years away from being leading performers. Meanwhile, this team can only get better. All over the field we have established players who guarantee at least 5 years of top quality (like Rodriguez and Bonaventura) all the way up to superb talents who have 15 years in them (like Donnarumma and Romagnoli).

For a team to really gel and become a cohesive unit, money is irrelevant. Look no further than Man Utd, and remember Leicester City. It's also stupid to think one can succeed without money; this ain't 1950s. Therefore, a clear plan, consistency, trust in youth, and smart (Mahrez) rather than flashy (Pogba) transfers are in brief the ingredients of success.

I see all of those in the current Milan, and we have no way but upward. Once all the scrub on our bench are peeled off and replaced by useful professionals, and once our young stars hit their peak, I am more than confident we can challenge all the top dogs of world football.

How can we not? We're one of them.

juve looked damn good today. they're clearly the favs for a seventh consecutive title.

napoli/roma also have better squads on paper. thank god serie a has 4 CL spots again!!! top 4 is a must otherwise this season will be a gigantic failure.

GiancarloC wrote:4-1 losses in CL finals is dominant. I just had to say it.

6 straight scudetti. that's quite dominant...

we arent close. not yet.

They bought Fatuagin with money they got from the Pogba sale. That has nothing to do with their actual cash reserves. Just a note.

They looked damn good? Must have been watching a different game. Cagliari sucks. They had a penalty (VAR) which they floored and a clear cut miss that may go down as one of the worst misses of the season. Juve wasnt that great. They did do enough, but it hardly is an indicator.

I have a feeling VAR won't be loved by Juve fans.

I get the feeling I've figured out Milan's tactical plan for the season, having witnessed three competitive games so far.

We are fine in defense, fine with midfield starters but not midfield subs, and severely short in attack.

We have no left wingers, and even our half-ass LW, Niang, is frozen out. There is no cover for Suso, and no real lone-striker in the squad except our wonderkid Cutrone, who can't lead a team to UCL. We gave away Bacca, Lapadula and Luiz Adriano, lost Deulofeu, got rid of Ocampos, and Niang will surely leave. That's six guys gone. On the other hand, we promoted Cutrone, and have signed Borini and Silva. That's three new faces. Therefore, three attackers will be brought in. With three competitions ahead, this is no exaggeration; just logic. Same calculation in midfield: Sosa, Mauri, Poli, Kucka, Pasalic and Fernandez are gone. Five new faces were planned, three of which are here. Two new midfielders left to go.

Andre Silva was not bought to sit his ass on the bench, and Kalinic isn't being brought in to start; of these everyone can be sure. I believe Kalinic and the promised Grande Colpo will be our CFs, Suso the main RW, and Keita Balde the capable sub we lack. And here is my gut feeling: Andre Silva will be our LW/SS... Surprise!

Andre Silva is very similar to Pato and CR7, so he can be that technical winger who is in fact a shadow-striker and can even outscore the main striker. To cover for our absent wingers, there will be Keita, Bonaventura, and (unfortunately) Borini.

Only this way will our attack comprise of Silva. The idea of 3-5-2 will only be a Plan-B when we're in tight spots.

Therefore, I think that by September 1, Milan will have been shaped up like this:



Substitutes:
Donnarumma, Storari
Musacchio, Zapata, Gomez, Antonelli, Abate, Calabria
Montolivo, Locatelli, Bonaventura, TWO OTHER MIDFIELDERS TO BE SIGNED
Kalinic, Keita, Borini, Cutrone

No to Keita. That guy has some serious attitude problems. Lotito said we even offered 35 million (and he would have accepted that offer). Keita refused us again.

We need Aubameyang at this point. And maybe a surprise bid for Draxler. Kalinic is a complete waste of money when we should perhaps bring in Badelj instead.

Here's what i think , i'll try to keep it short as possible , many things were said and i won't bring up everything.

Depth :

We're not done just yet but even how we are , our depth is enough to get us into the CL places . For Serie A , it's good , not the best , not terrible either. Last 2-3 years we were actually horrid with regards to depth , not the same anymore. If we were already in the CL , i would agree it's dire , but it's not the case right now. Pending a couple more signings , it's good enough for our real goal , which is CL participation. Next summer we will improve even further hopefully with CL participation achieved.

Don't compare ours with Jjuventus , they have impressive depth of CL standard , it's simply unecessary making comparisons or wishing Milan had such depth from the get go. You need such depth only when you're into the CL and we're still pretty good for Serie A and EL , with the final touches to make us fully prepared for the season ahead.

Staying injury free .

Guardiola's Barca and their apotheosis of possession football is the real and true reason behind their impressive run of games with same/almost same XI. It's not mumbo jumbo Pep things, nor their set of players , when you walk and pass the ball for 1 hour and run maybe 30 minutes , the chances of injury and fatigue drop dramatically during a season. And their training was focused on this too , they had fresh legs and countless hours of training on them. We're not the same case and it will not go down nowhere near like this. We'll have injuries and fatigue , but nevertheless i don't expect being injury plagued . Normal stuff.

Montella values keeping the ball greatly and whilst there's not such hyperbole on possession as Pep's Barca , there still is significant emphasis there. I would expect this to help with fatigue and injury to a positive outcome , especially as we don't gingerpress near as much if at all like this. That said , we're not half way there yet to such levels so naturally we'll do our fair share of running and defending and counter attacking etc etc , fair share of injury and fatigue. Our depth should provide enough cover to get us into the CL , imho.

_

Other than that , there are a few things i read which literally had me scratching my head , but hey it's not like i've never been wrong myself. So i take them into consideration for what it's worth and move on for now . Not really interested talking prefferences , hypothesis and estimations right now.

All in all y'all calm your tities , we're gonna have a fun season , you shouldn't care what Juventus does , or anybody for that matter. We're a work in progress and good things will come in due time. Enjoy Milan not being a parody of themselves after years of struggle and don't suffer from pessimism and meltdowns . Nobody gets his fave players all the time and no team was completed in one summer , try to enjoy the gigantic progress at hand with our beloved team and save worrying for another day .

And Juve fans should pay Milan Sextion tax when entering in here to brag about their team imho , at least one Upjuventus per such post

My argument is that too much has been invested already not to finish on the right note (Kalinic isn't it). Go big or go home in other words. I was being super optimistic yesterday, but we really need at least 3-4 more signings this summer to challenge for a CL position.

My argument regarding our new signings is they have been above that of other new signings in other teams in the Serie A.

And that is your opinion Giancarlo , we've made great signings but only the season will prove who did what better and where . As for ending the mercato on a high note , it remains to be seen doesn't it?

I agree Milan did fantastic over the summer , and it is my opinion we absolutely have what it takes to make it into the CL , agreed with maybe the final moves on the mercato sealing the deal . I personally do not expect 3-4 signings yet but whatever , let it come whatever it is .

Again , we're not a CL team just yet to have depth equaling this status. It is normal and in any case , it's the best we've had since ages , never mind our 11.

I fully understand the concern with injuries , it is important . That said , we should seriously wait until the end of the mercato to make a dive into more serious talk about depth . There is serious lack of depth as far as wingers go and imho i do not see how this will be solved in 10 days unless we either pay some BIG money for 2-3 wingers , or simply change formation and scrap wingers for wingbacks or maybe 4-3-1-2 . There's no way in hell we keep going with 4-3-3 2/3 of the time . It works for now because we haven't yet prepared our eventual methods , it's a safe bet by Montella to keep going with last season's work for now and i approve his decision.

But if you think we're getting Keita and 2 wingers more and have Kalinic and Andre Silva sit on the bench for a star CF , these things i would have to see to believe . Much more likely we'll eventually be playing with 2 up front and i see no problem whatsoever having Andre Silva , Kalinic and Auba/Belotti as our main forward line rotating as Montella sees fit. We've had much bigger players doing this in the past and the same could happen again as well. Only reason we go 4-3-3 most of the time it will be because we can't get a top CF this summer and we get Keita and maybe 1 winger more .

Or do you expect to see 3 competitions out with Keita/Bona/Suso and Borini/Niang as backups? Leave aside Mirabeli confirming we've ditched Keita . Media say a lot of things , he actually said we're not interested in him anymore. Only sensible thing to conclude is that 4-3-3 gets scrapped eventually , probably after the international break with Romagnoli hopefully back , for either 4-3-1-2 or 3-5-2 or any variation.

As for Suso , Suso himself has said he starts as a winger and often plays like a 10 anyway , where's the problemo having Suso/Calhanoglu playing as 10 between 3 competitions ? Or Calhanoglu as CM when Suso plays behind the 2 strikers , where's the problem? SO many things we can do , it's only things with wingers we have issues. Niang and Borini wingers are make do , you don't plan for 3 comps with these two as dependable players . It's just for the moment , so pls take a chill pill and relax. If anything not even Niang is as terrible playing second striker and Borini will only play the weakest of games once we're ready . Again pls chill , we may not have the best depth available but let's not ground everything or jump to conclusions of uncertain criteria . There are ways and i fully trust in Montella and Fassone and Mirabelli , they have shown good things so far and they deserve our support and praise so far.

My issue is Kalinic starting would be a disgrace. I can't believe the amount of money we are spending on a guy who is almost 30. And I don't want Keita. I just said that.

My wishlist: Draxler, Aubameyang and Badelj.

Maybe unrealistic... But that is my list. No Keita. He doesn't want us anyways.

Fully agree on Keita myself , he can piss off . I just brought him up because many want him , imagine wanting a player that doesn't value your offer for 3 months or so . Let that lad go where he wants , can't care less about Keita if he doesn't want Milan after all this time. We'll get it together with or without him and we were always doing so .

I would like Draxler , but i don't see it happening. Badelj confirmed stays at Fiorentina , Pioli convinced him. Auba case we know , unlikely but for all intents and purposes welcomed with open arms.

As for Kalinic , yeah not discussing Kalinic with you sorry

I'll just say his price is totally irrelevant and only an issue in your opinion , it would be good if you stop bringing it up , it doesn't matter , especially if Bacca gets bought by Villareal , what's the difference , not even 10m . Even if they don't , 10m loan with 15m obligation it's nothing for an experienced CF in the mercato of 2017 , CFs are premium range nowdays , get with the times. At the end of the day it's pure banter bringing his price up. To make you see this properly , i wouldn't bat an eye if we bought Auba or Belotti for 100m . Kalinic for 25m and paid in half over two summers , this alone is absolutely fine a deal for us and it becomes laughable when i remember we could get 18 from Bacca .

Move on with what he cost , it's only an imaginery issue for you , it's not an issue for Milan .

Kalinic is garbage though and not worth that price. We could spend that on a winger. In even today's market, he isnt worth that price.

If we don't sign Keita (and we most likely won't) why bother? Draxler is a winger idea and he could leave PSG at this point. Loan with obligation I think.

And my other point about Badelj, is that we need a vice Biglia. Maybe there is another option out there.

The Milan leadership will hand Fassone and Mirabelli extra funds to sign a mezzala, according to Sky.

Main Superheroes Yonghong Li and Han Li

ES wrote:The Milan leadership will hand Fassone and Mirabelli extra funds to sign a mezzala, according to Sky.

I'd prefer a world class CF, but I guess a top quality midfielder is more pressing. But we do need more than that.

Either way, I'll admit it has been a splendid summer and our team is playing very well.

Cutrone

He won a penalty and scored one so far Great kid with a great future if he keeps it up. I want him to stay at Milan.

If we are going for a Mezzala, i'd love Vidal. Though don't think thats possible, too late in the window and Bayern don't want to sell him.

Vidal... even less of a chance than Aubameyang. Great player though...

http://www.goal.com/en/news/hamburg-nicolai-muller-knee-injury-celebration/wa5h3ciq0igb1sxr1u648q7zk

A side note... players should not go crazy while celebrating goals... this is such a freak accident. Wow.

BTW, the new goal.com interface looks like diarrhea.