Since the rumors have already started, I opened the thread so we can post and comment the latest of them.

So, we already know that in a few weeks the clubs ownership will officially go to the Chinese and as the deal said, they have to invest 300m in the next 3 years. Considering that they invested 15m already during the Summer Window for Lapadula and Gomez, who do you think we can transfer for 85m in order to create a Champions Leauge competitor ?

So the 85 MM might not be for the club right? How much of it is money that is being paid to Finninvest for the club?

Dream Mode On: Veratti + Thiago Silvo + Isco.

Dream Mode Off: Milan Badelj + Isco (on loan) OR John Obi Mikel

I think - and I might be wrong, that those 300m are apart from the ones the club is recieving and also apart from the ones that will go to paying debts.

I think that Silva is coming eitherway, with us dreaming or not.

Indeed. And I love the idea of him and Romagnoli leading the defense.

I think you're incorrect there about the money

The 15m the Chinese investors paid in the summer didn't go into the transfer market but to Fininvest as the first down payment on the sale, same goes for the 85m that were paid recently. In total they added up to 100m which was used as the first down payment but also as the guarantee the Chinese paid (should anyone back out before the closing that 100m is given to the other party)

The 300m I've read is part of the investment the new owners will have to put into the club, and not all of it will be going into the transfer marker. But honestly, I don't believe there's any sort of binding contract on that. it's more of an act of goodwill from the Chinese' part to Silvio. It's like I'm selling a house to you and on the sale I stipulate that you have to renovate each bedroom. Once the house is yours you can really just do what you please with it. It's not like I'll take back the house if you go back on that word

As for the winter, I think they'll make a couple of signings, but I'm not getting ahead of myself

Dream mode on: Cesc, Isco/Kovacic, Matuidi

Dream mode off: Badelj

Oh, and thanks for opening the thread d'Arc, I'll pin this and unpin the summer thread

Welcome back Fillipo, you've been gone for a bit haven't you?

Thank you about the correction. With this new information coming to light, I dont think we should switch our dream mode to on.

You are welcome, I am sorry I did so without asking but I thought you just didnt notice.

“Gold from China, Milan after Isco." #Corriere dello Sport

Isco always targeted of Milan and Juventus, he does not have much space at Real Madrid and soon the two clubs will make their move. According to station "Mega Tv", Real Madrid wants 40-45milion euro to sell the player.

Isco's father-agent: "Milan and Juventus? I can assure you that we will not consider any offer until next summer."

La Gazzetta dello Sport:
"Milan and Chinese, the final list of investors will be revealed on late october. 4 partners are already known. Closing of the deal before the derby on November 20."

China Construction Bank, Ping An Insurance, Baoshang Bank, China Huarong and TCL Corporation are the possible investors. #IlSole24Ore

The list of investors will be presented to Fininvest between 20 and 25 October. There are 5-6 groups. #CorSera

Mirabelli is looking for reinforcements for the midfield ahead of the January market. The objectives are Badelj and Paredes. #LaStampa


Lucas Lima's agent: "There are several clubs interested: PSG and Valencia have also followed him. He would be Milan's Borja Valero. A quality midfielder to increase the technical rate and build the game. The Chinese like Brazilian players. There are many of our talents playing in China."

If we aren't dreaming I would say that either Badelj or Paredes wouldn't be terrible moves. Both are the type of players we need on the team, holding midfielders who can distribute the ball. I'd prefer Paredes but either would be welcome additions. I hope he is also looking at defenders, we need someone to pair with Romag to give this team some consistency.

I would also say that if we aren't really making a push to go anywhere this year come December we should look to move on and make some space. The way I see it, if we aren't going to make a real jump in quality with the players then we should continue to bring the young guys along. Bringing in one of Paredes or Badelj wont push the needle and make us contenders if we aren't contenders already. Fabregas, Isco, and some other names being brandied about sound great but they are more summer moves, when we have some real financial muscle and a clean sheet to make a push into Europe.

Milan's budget for January's transfer market will be €100m. #LaStampa

CorSport - Milan, here is the list of all potential Chinese investors:
- "TCL Corporation, the electronic giant charges a $16 billion turnover."
- "China Construction Bank (173 billion dollars of capitalism)."
- "Ping An Insurance (60 billion dollars invoiced) and Baoshan Bank, Mongolia's banking institution."
- China Merchant Bank (confirmed), strong Chinese bank of Guangdong, circulation 48 billion and assets of 843 billion.
This could be expected to be the big list of Sino Europe, all designed to enter the Chinese state, a project that seems too ambitious.

Milan are interested in Monaco's 17 year old winger Kylian Mbappé according to L'Equipe.

Thanks. Yes, I had to finish some things regarding my phd and at the University. I took a few weeks off and only lost out on the Sassuolo game. But now I'm fully back

But seriously, Badelj and Paredes are the kinds of players we should avoid. I cannot see a thing Badelj would add up to our midfield. We must aim higher and sign someone like Isco or Kovačić at least.

Mikel would be a little bit of a worry for me. I think he's at the point where he would be a downgrade for our bench.

I actually think Badelj would be an upgrade as a passer over most everyone in our midfield, that being said bringing him in wouldn't make us better to the degree we have to be to compete for anything. He would make us better but not to the degree necessary to get on that Juve level.

Fassone and Mirabelli have arrived in London and will attend #ChelseaLeicester.
[Sky]

Lazio are interested in Lapadula for January according to CorSport.

Perhaps Badelj is a slight upgrade, but he's still far from what we need. Fabregas is miles better.

All interesting names, I read somewhere that the combined assets of the corporations mentioned in the consortium is in the trillions, yes, with a T

That being said, what worries me is that these giant corporations wouldn't be sugar daddies for us, at least not in the way the Sheikhs are for City and PSG, so we'll have to see if there will really be an influx of cash or not


Welcome back! Should we start calling you Dr. now?




Badelj would be like Monto was a few years ago. He was an obvious upgrade over what we had at the time, but not good enough to really influence the quality of the team.

If we're not going to sign quality players than I'd rather give the kids a chance. No use continuing to make the same mistakes as were done under Galliani and continuing to load up the squad with more quantity but very little quality

Very soon hopefully


Agreed. Even though I never managed to see Monto as an obvious upgrade. He came in when Milan lost Seedorf, van Bommel and Gattuso. It was a downgrade, because we all expected him to excel whereas he didn't even manage to reach the level of play a 30-something Seedorf did in his last season with us.

Sure, but once we lost those players and it had already become apparent that we weren't going to sign a top quality midfielder, Monto was truly an upgrade for us considering the way our midfield was threadbare of quality. And let's not forget that Monto actually had a really good first season with us.

He struggled in his second one and then he kept getting serious injuries and it's been downhill since then.

350M is guaranteed for three years. 100M of which this winter.

That is coming from 20M transfer budgets .. Surely sounds like an influx of cash to me.

What of the years after the three years have passed, you say? China bought into Milan to promote for a 'future' WC in China. Just as Qatar did with PSG and sponsoring Barca. The Chinese have a vision for Milan, and starting off with 350M spread over three years isn't too shabby, especially with the inflated player price tags going around.

Trillions are not going to be poured into Milan; but rest assured it will be well maintained to win! The Chinese have ample economies of scale and they could multiply merchandizing and TV income for the club, let alone ensure a regular CL income and all that comes with it. I doubt they will throw/funnel in money the way Silvio did, as he was the only decision maker; while now the Chairman of Sino-Europe will be negotiating with X amount of owners before transfer budgets/decisions/etc are passed down to Fassone. They are business men and they have an intention. Time to drop the guard han fun times ahead

From your mouth to God's ears

I guess I was almost completely sold into it, but Paolo's rejection sort of put a bit of a wrench in it for me. Not completely derailing my hopes but certainly dampening them a bit

According to English media, Milan are ready to offer €25m for Erik Lamela.

Corriere della Sera: Fassone is considering offering Franco Baresi a bigger role at Milan.


Milan and Inter are interested in Lindelof. Benfica won't let the player for less than €30m (his clause). #Rai

Chelsea are ready to offer €55m for Romagnoli according to GdS.

Fabrizio Romano: Milan and Inter scouts were attending Club Brugge-Porto to observe Andrè Silva and Danilo Pereira from Porto and Denswil from Club Brugge.

We're talking a lot about people coming in. But who do you reckon are leaving? I feel Luiz Adriano will definitely be leaving. Probably Pasalic as well. This is a bit concerning because an injury to either Bacca or Lapadula puts us in a difficult position.

Also not sure if Gabriel will be interested in continuing to be No. 2 keeper.

Rumours link us to Lamela - but unless he genuinely wants to leave England, there is no chance he'll come to Milan.

Also rumours linking us to Thiago Silva. I'd be over the moon if he joined but we have to consider that his current salary at PSG is supposedly 13 million Euros. I don't see us going that far for a player who will be signing his last professional European contract.

Just one more thing. I loved this headline in GdS -



But seriously this is a huge statement. And funny how Romagnoli is the senior here.

Yeah, Luiz Adriano need to leave for his benefit. I don't think it's a problem, we still have Niang on that position too!

Why wouldn't Gabriel be happy as a No. 2 keeper? It's not like he is a phenomenon. If anything, Milan should be the ones worried about it. I'd loan him out again, and get an experienced goalkeeper.

Thiago Silva would be nice. His salary is insane. Why doesn't PSG want to renew with him? Could it be the salary? If so he'll have to take a wage-cut anyway, so we don't really have to "match" the 13 million per say.

Hahahahah, yeah it's nice.

It was evident for me that Romagnoli was going to be a hit. Donnaruma was quite the surprise, but I think it was Berlusconi who praised him first?!

It's nice to see all these youngsters, and we shouldn't sell them!

From England, "Sun Sport": Chelsea are ready to offer about €60m for Romagnoli.

Now this is tempting.

No. Not yet. I'll rather sell him for something like 120 MM about 5 or 6 years later. It's hard to find replacements that good. Plus it would destroy our current season. Imagine having Zapata replace Romagnoli in the centre.

I wouldn't sell Romagnoli for any price at this time. Donnaruma is off limits as well. If we are going to be getting a lot of money for the transfer market then we have no need to sell. Holding on to these players is a mark of intent that we need to show Europe that we are coming back.

Yes, if anything, we should be buying players..not selling.

We are not going to get an unlimited transfer budget, player prices are what they are, and we have a lot of gaps in our team. If there is a very good offer for a player (any player) we should be considering it. But I would not sell unless the offer is really good.

The gaps aren't significant enough to justify selling incredibly promising young players. Personally I think one of our biggest challenges at the moment is convincing top of the line players that Milan is a worthy potential destination. Selling Romagnoli or Donnaruma would only convince players that we aren't to be taken seriously. Sure, any mid level player on the team should be sold if the price is right but talismans are untouchable.

Calciomercato says Montella likes Lorenzo Pellegrini of Sassuolo, but Roma have a re-buy option for €10m.

No, no, no. I don't agree at all. I'd rather we kept our formation the way it is, and watch our players develop than to do this. All of our promising youngsters should be off the market. They represent the future of Milan in my opinion. Specially, that you're talking about players that have passed through our youth system, and are really proving their worth!

Who are we going to get to fill our gaps anyway? I don't think we'll do a deal like Bacca, and we simply can't attract the top players because we are not in the champions leauge anymore. So, if we're going to get someone, it's probably going to be players a la Fabregas or Thiago that are either at the end of their contracts or are kept on the bench. These kind of transfers usually won't take that much money power to get them done.

Also, what's the point of the sale to the Chinese? And why is everyone happy about it if we're going to sell our star youngster for 60 million lol? Berlusconi spent a huge amount last year without even being able to get big cash out of a player. If they're going to sell such players, then I would have prefered Berlusconi to stay. First, for sentimental and historical reasons, (which are very important by the way) and second for financial ones.

So, yeah just keep the youngsters. Try to sign 1-2 veterans for a good deal (CM and a CB), and aim for that champions league spot.

The point of the sale is that we get some money and hopefully a competent management team. And while there is no guarantee that this will actually happen, the path we have been on is far from ideal. Not to mention the fact that Berlu is getting old, and his kids are unlikely to invest anything at all if they take over.

In any case, I agree with you that we should try to hold on to key players, particularly the younger ones. However, if we get a high enough offer, I think it should be taken into consideration. (FWIW, I would not jump at €60m for Romagnoli, but a higher offer maybe.)

I imagine it would be laughed off. He's started 9 of 12 games and appeared in all 12. They aren't going to take a loss on an important first XI player. If we offered €40m, they would maybe consider it.

Arsenal are ready to offer €35m for M'Baye Niang, but Milan will block any move as they are determined to keep the player. #CalcioMercatoWeb

Give us 45m and I would be ready to say goodby to him.

Milan have expressed interest in Lazio defender Stefan de Vrij. #Repubblica

Milan scouts will attend Europa League game Olympiakos-FC Astana this evening. #MN

CorSport: Milan are interested in Fabregas, but Chelsea want Romagnoli in a swap deal. Fassone remains very cold about this idea.

Donnarumma is expected to sign a contract until 2022 with a €3m/year salary. Fassone will meet Raiola after the closing. #TuttoSport

Fabrizio Romano: Romagnoli is unsellable to Milan. Chelsea are interested, but the Milan defender is untouchable.

Milan and Napoli are interested in Sporting CP, 22 year old defender Ruben Semedo according to A Bola.

Fabrizio Romano: Milan remain interested in Lucas Lima. Santos want €20m but the player's entourage are attempting to get them to sell for €15m. Similarly to Gabriel, his transfer fee will be equally divided between Santos, the player's family and Doyen Sports.

GdS: Pavoletti or Verrati. It's an italian Milan. The mister is waiting for new players in january.

Pavoletti and we let Adriano go. Okay. But Verrati would just cut space for Locatelli right? Verrati is young and he won't be cheap.

And would be what we need, no?

Yeah. Not really. I'm not sure we need all that many players actually if Mati Fernandez, Sosa and Bertolacci are fit. Especially for January. However we're light on the wings...

Really? As far as I'm concerned Bertolacci is a big shot (already failed one season), Mati is dubious whereas Sosa struggles to find himself a position in the team.

Man, if we wanna rebuild, if we wanna winning and playing well, we need to look beyond those three.

Verratti would be a dream, but it's never going to happen

And I see your point. So the question is what options are there in January, compared to the summer.

I'm pretty sure that as much as it hurts, we'll find it difficult to carry on this early momentum till the end of the season. We're going to struggle in patches and if we can hit the winter 5 points off the top place then it's great. Remember the goal this season is to finish in Europe, and we should be careful about who we purchase. Next summer, Milan can look to make the big buys and thus give them a whole pre-season to settle into the team.

I agree with Jack here, unless we can get rid of some of the dead wood in January than I doubt we will be looking to make big splashes. If we are in the hunt in January, I would say just make some background moves and let this team get a season of consistency under its belt. However, I don't think we will still be in such a good position come January. Success takes consistency and growing pains and getting them out this year would leave us with a bigger budget next summer and the ability to build a powerful competitive unit.

I'm of the mindset that when it comes down to it, teams with players who can change the flow of a game will earn their money. We have few game changers and a shallow bench and I think that will show over time. That being said, Verratti is a dream, Pavoletti at best is a sub. I think we need to look into a defender and an upgrade to Suso's position. After that, we are looking at needing a new midfielder or two and maybe another seconda punta who can play multiple forward positions.

Transfer confusion at Milan
By Football Italia staff

It’s reported there is transfer confusion at Milan, as Adriano Galliani isn’t working with Massimiliano Mirabelli.

The Rossoneri are in the midst of a takeover, with Sino-Europe Sports looking to take control of the club from Silvio Berlusconi’s Fininvest.

If and when the deal goes through, Mirabelli will be installed as the sporting director, and will therefore be responsible for recruitment.

However, he cannot know what kind of funds will be available, and according to calciomercato.com he doesn’t have a direct link with Coach Vincenzo Montella.

Galliani, therefore, is proceeding as normal and has been asked by Montella to get a winger and another midfielder.

The ownership situation means that talks have not been opened over any deals yet though, leaving the Diavolo in an awkward position for January.

Nah, the media just want something to chew on.

The winter transfer business is currently with Galliani, when the sale of Milan is perfected that shall be handed over the same day to Mirabelli; hence there is no nonsense but only noise (noise as what the media are stirring, which sells inevitably )

Plus, the sale is to happen next month while the winter transfer window will be open after that date. Hence wouldn't Mirabelli be surprised that he is already in contact with players the Chinese have earmarked.

The sale is scheduled to be finalised in November. We'll see...