Déjà vu, anyone? [Newsletter]

It’s June 3rd, the day before Milan’s final game of the season. Rumours suggest Paolo Maldini is on the verge of signing Ruben Loftus-Cheek from Chelsea, with an agreement more or less in place. Three days later, though, the pursuit was dropped. That is until the last few days, with history repeating itself.

In fact, Milan have now reportedly reached an agreement with Chelsea for the transfer of the Englishman at around €20m including bonuses. Furthermore, the Rossoneri are now also seriously targeting the likes of Christian Pulisic and Gianluca Scamacca.

Déjà vu, anyone? Maldini’s dismissal resulted in a rather chaotic situation, with the new management trying to create their own path. The Loftus-Cheek negotiation was indeed dropped, as confirmed by many credible sources, but now three weeks later Milan have returned to the midfielder.

There may have been some interpersonal issues, but it’s starting to look more and more like Maldini and the new management actually were quite aligned on which players to target. Let’s just put it this way, why Maldini was sacked hasn’t become clearer over the last few weeks, but rather more confusing.

In any case, Milan are at least moving in the right direction on the mercato, which is absolutely essential ahead of the pre-season. Many players have left and more are expected to depart, meaning the Rossoneri will have the challenging but perhaps enjoyable task of signing many players this summer.

Having said that, there have been a ton of rumours just over the last few days and it’s been hard to decipher the concrete from the not-so-concrete links. But we can actually take something positive from this: the increased rumours suggest that the directors indeed have stepped up their pursuits, now working on multiple fronts.

News bulletin

➤ As mentioned above, Milan have reached an agreement with Chelsea for the transfer of Loftus-Cheek. The transfer fee should be around €20m including bonuses, with Gazzetta Dello Sport saying €16m plus €4m and Gianluca Di Marzio saying €21.5m including bonuses. The midfielder will sign a four-year deal.

➤ Milan are also in talks with Chelsea over Christian Pulisic and want to close a deal at €10m plus bonuses. The English side will likely demand more but there appears to be room for negotiating. The player himself is willing to lower his salary in order to get the move.

➤ The goalkeepers Marco Sportiello (31 years) and Noah Raveyre (18) both underwent their respective medical tests for Milan earlier today and should sign the papers with Milan very soon. Sportiello will be the new second-choice goalkeeper in the first team, while Raveyre will play for the Primavera.

➤ Gianluca Scamacca is Milan’s first target for the attack, after missing out on Marcus Thuram, but West Ham have not opened up to a paid loan with an option to buy yet. As a result, the Rossoneri are seriously considering triggering the €10m release clause in Alvaro Morata’s contract.

➤ Milan are set to announce a sponsorship with the famous Baseball-hat maker New Era. The company will likely start manufacturing products with Milan branding, further strengthening the synergy with the American market.

➤ Finally, Zlatan Ibrahimovic was interviewed at a recent event and shared his thoughts on the sacking of Maldini, stating that he’s very sorry for the ‘Milan legend’. He also spoke about a potential role at the club in the future, responding with his usual humour.

In case you missed it

Make sure to check out the latest podcast episode, and our latest bonus podcast which discusses the exit of Tonali. You can also read our latest bonus article, which talks about the Thuram failure. This week, we will also publish a bonus on the story of Geoffrey Moncada.