[han2503]

But consider this: suppose we renew Kessie's contract at his terms, that is the 8-9M whatever insane salary he's asking. Do you honestly then think any club will come knocking on our door with an offer for Kessie and meet his salary too?

I really don't believe that. Because first of all Kessie is not a highly desired and requested player. It took him to becoming a free agent for other clubs to get interested. Nobody really considered him beforehand. And consequently, the only reason clubs are interested is because they'd be getting his services for free. They'd only have to pay his wages. And the only clubs interested thus far seem to be PSG (no sh*t) and Tottenham (after Conte's appointment).

Kessie and his agent know this too well, hence they've got the leverage in this situation. He'll never renew knowing it's because the club wants to sell him afterwards. So, all that's left for us at this point is to just negotiate, or let him go. The club's hands are tied.

And it was the same for Dollarumma and Capanoglu.

We all have to accept the fact that football players have become greedy mercenaries that care only about money, and get easily manipulated by their agents. People like Tonali, who accepted a reduction in salary just to play for Milan, are a rarity nowadays.

True, but one thing I do not believe is the 9m demand. I just don't. We wouldn't even still be negotiating with him if that were the case. We'd have already cut him off imo as we can never reach anywhere near that kind of figure. Not with all the renewals still to be completed of players who can demand even more than that based on their potential and marketing value (Theo, Leao). I personally think we're sticking to a 4m offer. Which is what we're also offering Theo and Benna. They want to keep a wage structure, and Kessie is most likely demanding 6/6.5. I understand both sides in this case but Milan need to make exceptions for a few players. And imo Kessie, Theo and Tomori all fall under that unbrella, maybe Leao in a few years as well. We simply cannot continue to lose players for free.

[han2503]

?Donnarumma was in tears on the pitch after the Atalanta game because he knew it was his last game. He was told few days earlier that Milan signed a new goalkeeper,? he said.

?It was Milan?s decision to not wait for Donnarumma, while he wanted to wait and see if Milan will participate in the Champions League. Milan could not wait because Roma joined the race for Maignan and they would have risked losing him.

?In my opinion if on Monday after the victory in Bergamo Donnarumma was called to Milan headquarter he would have signed the contract extension.?

Interesting quotes from Di Marzio.

I do believe the club took a stand with both Hakan and Donna. And we came out the better for it in both cases. But we won't be able to continue to strike lightning each time. Kessie imo deserves some sort of exception. Hakan was not worth what he was asking for, simple. Donna and his agent were more trouble than he was worth. But we cannot continue to hemorrhage assets that cost lost of money

As for Kessie. Man U need a profile like him more than water at this point. I'm sure they would be interested in January if we were to offer him at a decent price if it came down to it

[X-Offender]

True, but one thing I do not believe is the 9m demand. I just don't. We wouldn't even still be negotiating with him if that were the case. We'd have already cut him off imo as we can never reach anywhere near that kind of figure. Not with all the renewals still to be completed of players who can demand even more than that based on their potential and marketing value (Theo, Leao). I personally think we're sticking to a 4m offer. Which is what we're also offering Theo and Benna. They want to keep a wage structure, and Kessie is most likely demanding 6/6.5. I understand both sides in this case but Milan need to make exceptions for a few players. And imo Kessie, Theo and Tomori all fall under that unbrella, maybe Leao in a few years as well. We simply cannot continue to lose players for free.

Most reports suggest he's increased his demands to 8.5M. We're bound to believe them because we have no other sources of information.

I don't think we're offering only 4M when we reportedly offered 5M to Capanoglu.

[X-Offender]

Interesting quotes from Di Marzio.

I do believe the club took a stand with both Hakan and Donna. And we came out the better for it in both cases. But we won't be able to continue to strike lightning each time. Kessie imo deserves some sort of exception. Hakan was not worth what he was asking for, simple. Donna and his agent were more trouble than he was worth. But we cannot continue to hemorrhage assets that cost lost of money

As for Kessie. Man U need a profile like him more than water at this point. I'm sure they would be interested in January if we were to offer him at a decent price if it came down to it

Good riddance. I hate players who think they're bigger than the club.

[X-Offender]

We're being heavily linked with Renato Sanches these days.

Two things that could prove an obstacle: 1) his price - Lille are asking for 30M; 2) his injury record - he's very injury prone, always being injured many times in every season (he's missed a total of 26 games between 2020 and 2021). Link

I'd look elsewhere. I think he's a great player but he's not worth it at that price if he's always gonna play half the games due to injuries. Let's get Kamara for free like the cheapskates we are.

[X-Offender]

Capanoglu on his choice to play for Inter
It is a particular choice, but this is life: you have to look forward and not backward. I am very grateful to Milan, the players are all good guys and I have no problems with them. I knew that Inter have always been a great team, they often beat Milan in derbies. They've always had something more.

This guy should learn to STFU and show some respect.

When Seedorf was transferred from Inter to Milan in 2002 he told a journalist who had asked him an Inter related question that "when I was at Inter I talked only about Inter. I know there's rivalry between the two clubs, but now that I am at Milan I only want to talk about Milan. Don't make me questions about such rivalry because I will never answer. In fact, if you make me any such questions I could even fine you".

That was the class of Clarence Seedorf. The Turk obviously doesn't even know the meaning of that word.

[han2503]

We're being heavily linked with Renato Sanches these days.

Two things that could prove an obstacle: 1) his price - Lille are asking for 30M; 2) his injury record - he's very injury prone, always being injured many times in every season (he's missed a total of 26 games between 2020 and 2021). Link

I'd look elsewhere. I think he's a great player but he's not worth it at that price if he's always gonna play half the games due to injuries. Let's get Kamara for free like the cheapskates we are.

Renato would be my dream purchase and an upgrade on Kessie. He literally had him and Benna by the balls last season when we played Lille. He brings all the physicality of Kessie and adds to it some serious skill and vision.

I'd take a chance on him and Lille are in big financial trouble plus we have a good rapport with them. The fact we got Maignan for just 16-18m iirc is proof that they will sell if an offer comes. Imo he is worth a lot more than that, especially knowing now that other clubs were interested in him


Re Hakan, he's an idiot and lacks any class, let's not forget that he had bitter episodes in Germany as well. What irritates me most about him is that he thinks he's better than he truly is. We've seen the Inter fans already start to turn on him, a crappy penalty in the derby which they didn't even win won't erase another 30 subpar games. I wanted to keep him this summer because I was worried about finding a replacement, but Brahim has proven to be a much better player and the numbers attest to that. Good riddance to bad rubbish and Milan fans need to stop giving him any more oxygen and air time on social media. That banner they put out about his wife was stupid as well. He's not worth the effort as he was never that special or that important at Milan. He said so himself, only Pioli wanted him to stay, the rest didn't make the effort.

[X-Offender]

Renato would be my dream purchase and an upgrade on Kessie. He literally had him and Benna by the balls last season when we played Lille. He brings all the physicality of Kessie and adds to it some serious skill and vision.

I'd take a chance on him and Lille are in big financial trouble plus we have a good rapport with them. The fact we got Maignan for just 16-18m iirc is proof that they will sell if an offer comes. Imo he is worth a lot more than that, especially knowing now that other clubs were interested in him

So his injuries don't bother you?

Btw, since we were looking for an AM this entire summer, I wonder if letting Paqueta go so soon and easily was a mistake. He's really turned into a great player for Lyon. I feel like we should have been more patient with him. He's certainly better than Brahim.

[han2503]

So his injuries don't bother you?

Btw, since we were looking for an AM this entire summer, I wonder if letting Paqueta go so soon and easily was a mistake. He's really turned into a great player for Lyon. I feel like we should have been more patient with him. He's certainly better than Brahim.

They do, but that's why it's a risk, one that's I'd take personally.

Paqueta I got the feeling Pioli never fancied him, plus doing it in League 1 is a bit different than Serie A. He's good, and I wish we'd have inserted some sort of buy back as well, but I don't know if he'd fit in with us tbh

[X-Offender]

They do, but that's why it's a risk, one that's I'd take personally.

Paqueta I got the feeling Pioli never fancied him, plus doing it in League 1 is a bit different than Serie A. He's good, and I wish we'd have inserted some sort of buy back as well, but I don't know if he'd fit in with us tbh

I think he would. The guy just lost confidence and self-esteem after an impressive start. Players tend to drop in performance in such cases. But now that he's back to his usual self he's playing really good. A pure trequartista, fast, hard-working, strong physically, very skilled, great vision and shooting. What more do you need? Some English club will sign him soon for an insane amount, I'm sure of it.

And I wouldn't consider playing in France as a sign of "having it easy". After all, aren't we making all our signings from France lately? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Even your dear Sanches would be coming from Lille. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[Rossoneri7]

Sanches is a dream signing for me, but I think Tonali should be given more time on the pitch instead. Afterall, he will only get better if he is given the space to grow like that.

Kamara sounds interesting to fill the Kessie gap, and recalling Adli to finish off the season with Milan would not be bad as well.

Whichever way Maldini and co decide to handle the Kessie issue, I think they will have thought about the chance for a Scudetto this season. If they decide to keep him till the end of his contract and Milan secures Serie A, then it would be worthwhile. Selling him midway through the season and having a rough patch in Jan/Feb/March potentially loosing the ground in a Scudetto race would be detrimental.

Thats the sort of consideration that will be taken and I trust the management to do what is right, after all a Scudetto is worth 10x what Kessie?s sale would bring in 6 months left on his contract. I would think.

[han2503]

I think he would. The guy just lost confidence and self-esteem after an impressive start. Players tend to drop in performance in such cases. But now that he's back to his usual self he's playing really good. A pure trequartista, fast, hard-working, strong physically, very skilled, great vision and shooting. What more do you need? Some English club will sign him soon for an insane amount, I'm sure of it.

And I wouldn't consider playing in France as a sign of "having it easy". After all, aren't we making all our signings from France lately? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Even your dear Sanches would be coming from Lille. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

I don't think League 1 means you have it easy, but the pressure at Milan was simply bigger, and while he was olay in Gattuso's 4-3-3 he really failed to imporess as an AM in Pioli's system.

Don't know, maybe he could have turned out great, but I doubt we'd have given him the time he's had at Lyon to develop as he has. Hakan was still here last season and he was Pioli's first choice, Paqueta wouldn't be as far ahead as he is now if he had stayed. Maybe ideally we should have loaned him, but I think the management are going to keep taking these calculated risks on players who they think they can flip, even if it's for a small amount or just breaking even

True re Sanches, and hey, you never know, he's struggled at Bayern and in the EPL. Buying players is always a risk though. You just have to hope that the benefits will outweigh the costs and not the other way around

Sanches is a dream signing for me, but I think Tonali should be given more time on the pitch instead. Afterall, he will only get better if he is given the space to grow like that.

Kamara sounds interesting to fill the Kessie gap, and recalling Adli to finish off the season with Milan would not be bad as well.

Whichever way Maldini and co decide to handle the Kessie issue, I think they will have thought about the chance for a Scudetto this season. If they decide to keep him till the end of his contract and Milan secures Serie A, then it would be worthwhile. Selling him midway through the season and having a rough patch in Jan/Feb/March potentially loosing the ground in a Scudetto race would be detrimental.

Thats the sort of consideration that will be taken and I trust the management to do what is right, after all a Scudetto is worth 10x what Kessie?s sale would bring in 6 months left on his contract. I would think.

Don't think we'll recall Adli, that's all just media speculation. We left him at Bordeaux as a sign of good faith, otherwise the deal would have fallen through. I don't see us going back on that. Plus leaving him in France for another year was the best option as he'll get much more time there than he would have with us.

Re Tonali, I just don't think the Tonali-Benna pivot is a strong one. We need a player with a similar profile to Kessie to play next to either one of them to get the best dynamic imo. Bakayoko can provide that, we just need to get him fit and playing a bit more than he is now.

The issue with Kessie also is that he's going to be gone for a month at AFCON. So that's already going to hurt our chances for the scudetto. Ideally we should offer something for Kamara and bring him in January. Marseille are in a similar position as us with him. They risk losing him for nothing this summer, plus paying for him eliminates the competition from other clubs who will be more willing to throw signing on bonuses and agent commissions at him, which could see us getting easily priced out at that point. Plus this way has the added benefit of anticipating Kessie the way we did Donna and simply make him a non-factor for us

[han2503]

It looks like we're going to announce a big sponsorship deal with Budweiser soon. We've made such great progress on this front compared to the sad state of affairs we were in during the last 2 years of the Berlu era and even worse under the Chinese.

These were the days when we lost Audi and had no motor partner for a while, lost Gucci and signed on with Diesel (awful stuff), lost Adidas and went for a much smaller deal with Puma, nearly halved our Emirates deal.

At least we're making very good strides and broadening our portfolio of partnerships

I think we've added so far under Gazidis' stewardship

BMW
BitMex
Lete
Oppo
EA Sports
Skrill
Dubai Expo
Hermont & Blaine
Getorade
Socios
Nexen
Clivet

And I'm sure there are a few smaller ones which I cannot remember

Excellent work

[X-Offender]

We just need to start building that new stadium ASAP at this point. It's going to make a world of difference.

Renewal news:
- Raiola met with Maldini today at Casa Milan. He said that for both Romagnoli and Ibrahimovic anything is possible.
- Pioli's renewal is expected to be announced soon. 3M + bonuses until 2024 (from 2M actual).
- Leao, Theo and Bennacer's renewals are also imminent. Plan is to sign them before Christmas.

I'm very unsure about keeping Zlatan for another year. I think the guy is at his limit, and if we wanna develop a more modern and dynamic football to compete in the CL next season we need fresh players upfront. Someone like that Alvarez kind for example.

Personally, I wouldn't renew it. Bring a top CF upfront. Have Giroud as second choice for another season. Maybe bring back Colombo (who's doing well in Serie (IMG:style_emoticons/default/cool.gif) as third option.

[Fillipo Simone]

Audi? We never had a sponsorship with Audi. We had Opel but we lost them because Opel was on the verge of bankruptcy.

As for Ibrahimović, I really think he's aware of his limits. We might sign a cheaper deal with him and also bear in mind that keeping Ibra will be a good magnet for players like Vlahović who already consider him an idol or are being named as his heirs.