Amen to that. Felt like I was on a hamster wheel with ever step supposedly being the decisive step forward that lead to nowhere (IMG:style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif)


Hallelulja!!



Agreed.

Once again, great business from Maldini and Massara. Fees for players have just become insane and simply unsustainable for Serie A clubs who are cursed as members of a terribly run organization. Thankfully we managed to get this done, even when there was a club like f@cking Leeds who were offering over 40m and a better salary to the player

Starting and secondary line-ups thus far:




Plus Mirante, Bakayoko, Saelemaekers, Zlatan and Lazetic.

We obviously need to sign a CB (Tanganga and Ndicka being the primary names) and a DM (this Chukuwuemeka kid being linked the most).

Midfield and CB areas obviously a big worry, Have to replace Romagnoli and Kessie ASAP. And injury and we're completely derailed

Both a CB and a CDM will be brought in. The targets identified and Maldini/Massara are discussing/negotiating behind the scenes.

This CDK soap opera teaches us an important lesson in how they go about their business. I would not expect them to act on impulse. They have a main target and a fall safe target. They know what elements is needed in building this team as they know what the coach needs.

The more I zoom out and look in I see teams like inter digging deep holes in their balance sheet, while Milan are building a fortress of a balance sheet.

I like the way the dup are working.

@han Re- Messias signing, I honestly believe he deserves it. He is a player that doesn?t complain, keeps his head down and works for the team. Last year he was an outsider, this year he will be very much familiar with how to team functions and will be an asset for sure in providing quality/depth. Not a ballon d?or contender for sure but a great option to have coming off the bench.

Sales? I think with Kessie, Romagnoli, and Castillejo gone Milan have done enough. Saelemakers isn?t that bad, I don?t mind him at all. And now with CDK and Origi, he has a small Belgian community going for him. He most definitely will come in handy if you clock in the amount of games the be played + injury/fatigue factor. He would give that additional cushion for squad rotation. Don?t think Milan will be shipping him off. Even if Ziyech does come.

The good thing is though that as far as the starting line-up is concerned we're fine. I think that's a very strong formation, especially since our weakest areas from last season (RW, AM and CF) have been strengthened with higher quality alternatives.

Kalulu-Tomori have shown to be a top class pairing. I actually expect Kalulu to improve even further. Bennacer-Tonali for me was always the way to go in midfield since last season. Adli is everything Brahim hasn't been for us. Origi has the quality to do much better than Giroud. And obviously CDK is the icing on the cake.

I have a very good feeling about this season. But obviously we need to complete the squad with those Romagnoli and Kessie replacements. They don't even need to be marquee signings, just decent backups. I'd be perfectly fine with Tanganga/Ndicka and Chukwuemeka, for instance.

Agreed re the operations of the club. Smart business ever since Maldini and Massara took over, not to mention the scouting team behind them lead by Moncada.

Inter and Juve are obviously trying to do what they can for instant success. The fact that we won the league shows that our way is the right one. Not to mention that, as you said, they're digging themselves into financial holes. Especially Inter who don't have Exor behind them to inject capital when needed

As for Messias, sure the story of his rise inspires romanticism, but we cannot base our transfer strategy on how beautiful a player's story is. I like both Alexis and Messias in their own way, but the quality gap between our starter and back ups simply shouldn't be that huge. With Ziyech he'd arguably be better than CDK as of right now. Most CL teams have 2 starting quality teams, for me it is not good enough that we'll have Messias and Alexis as direct back ups to a very young player who's going to have a lot of pressure put on hi to perform instantly.


But with the schedule we'll have we cannot think of it like this. The midfield pivot atm is a major issue. We need a player on the same level as Bennacer and Tonali, that's why I have been so tied to the Sanches stuff, because he is just that. Pobega, Krunic, Bakayoko, this is the same issue I've talked about above re the RW and AM positions, you cannot go 10 steps down the quality ladder when you introduce a sub or have to rotate. Plus, I think a more physical player like Kessie was is important to add to the mix there as Benna-Tonali are not always the ideal pivot partnership against certain teams. As things stand, as soon as we rotate that midfield the quality falls off a cliff. And that is a big worry, And the Aston Villa kid is highly rated so I would be okay with him (sort of) being the signing, but I would be much more comfortable with a ready made player here. Because if either Benna or Tonali are out we could be in trouble. The CB are is not as precarious, because there is Kjaer already as a back up. So whoever comes in is not under instant pressure and has to start a good amount of games

Renato would have been perfect, but I repeat that for me that ship has sailed. No other names are being mentioned right now, so the Aston Villa kid seems the most plausible option. There was also a rumor regarding Fratesi a couple of weeks ago, a player I highly rate, but nothing has been mentioned ever since.

Diallo is being mentioned again for the defence. Honestly he would be perfect. Experienced, left-footed, can play as LB so we'd also be solving the vice-Theo issue. Let's see if PSG are willing to give him up on loan.

Sanches to PSG confirmed late last night, right after Roma had agreed terms with Wijnaldum.

As I have always been saying, PSG was just waiting to free up space, and Sanches was just a matter of time for them.

Good for him and us as well. I would never want a player that prefers that pathetic club over us.

Chukwemeka to Chelesa is also official.

So, in a single day we lost both our targets. Curious to see who we'll go after now.

Disappointing that he'd push to go to a club that doesn't even celebrate winning the league. And CL success is the only factor that defines whether a season is a success or not. They booed Messi FFS after winning the league

Anyway good luck to him, no hard feelings. PSG were offering him a better deal so can't fault him there.

This does leave us in a bit of a pickle though. We really need an extra mid. I really don't know who that coul be at this point.

He's a mercenary. He's been playing with his salary demands for months. We would have signed him since May had he accepted our offer. Now his old mentors go to PSG and he takes the bait like a b*tch in heat. F*ck him. I hope, and I'm sure that he will fail there.

It is somewhat of a disappointment, but nevertheless I believe Maldini and co have shortlisted names for midfield. They work behind closed doors and have not commented on any rumor thus far, which makes me feel at ease that what they got cooking is a player that adds value to the team.

Plus, I believe Bennacer should be given a first team role and the incoming player someone who rotates with Tonali and Bennacer. So in a way, I see Sanches not coming as giving more responsibilities to our Algerian talent.

This, one million times.

Whoever comes as Kessie's replacement should be someone reliable but willing to warm the bench for the majority of the games. Tonali-Bennacer is our future.

Anyway, I'm not worried about our mercato anymore. Yes, we do need a couple of signings to complete the roster, but we already have a quality starting line-up and quality alternatives in most roles. Adli, CDK and Origi will make a difference.

I'd prefer someone of higher quality than that though. Last season we had 3 starter level players. So by saying you want someone who is just there to rotate and is willing to warm the bench you're accepting that the quality of the squad will go down

And if either Sandro or Benna get injured then we have issues. Because the guy we brought in is going to cause a dip in quality, one that was not there last season. I'd personally prefer if we go all in for the position and get that type of profile for the CB position because in that area we have 3 starting quality players for 2 positions while in midfield it's 2 for 2. I really don't want to see Spurs rejects or any other random name just so we can say we signed someone. If that's the case than we van just stick with Krunic, Pobega and Baka because it's not going to make that much of a difference

We have no money, man. Budget was reportedly 55-60 mil and we've already spent 40 for CDK, Florenzi and Messias.

Sanches was a bargain because he would be coming for 15 mil, but it's impossible to find someone of that quality for that much money.

Besides, I didn't mean to sign someone of scarce quality (otherwise we already have Pobega and Krunic), but someone who is willing to accept less playing time. Last year Kessie played a lot because Pioli was fixated with him and Bennacer was injured for many games. But personally I was never a fan of Kessie and I'm actually glad he's not here anymore so Isma can get more playing time.

The names of Pape Matar Sarr, Ndombele and Douglas Luiz are being thrown around now. I'd be fine with any of them (though I don't think Douglas Luiz will come).