The week of farewells [Newsletter]

May 22, 2024

The final game of the season is upon us and several AC Milan players are getting ready to pack their bags. Some will be sold, while a few have expiring contracts that won’t be renewed. Olivier Giroud confirmed his exit last week, as we discussed in the last edition of the newsletter, and Simon Kjaer did the same on Tuesday afternoon. In short, it’s the week of farewells.

Giroud and Kjaer have both been very important for Milan in their return to the top, acting as leaders along with Zlatan Ibrahimovic in a very young squad. Another important player in the locker room, namely Antonio Mirante, will also part ways with the club at the end of this season and will likely hang up his boots. A lot of experience is leaving, in other words, and that should not be underestimated.

Considering how the management is expected to act this summer, based on the targets that have been mentioned thus far, Milan will be going through a generation switch of sorts. The leaders of the team will no longer be 35, 37 and 40, but something along the lines of 26, 28 and 33. Had it not been for Alessandro Florenzi, the oldest would have been Marco Sportiello at 32.

In short, the likes of Mike Maignan, Davide Calabria, Theo Hernandez, Ismael Bennacer and Rafael Leao will have to step up next season. Not so much because of their age but rather their number of appearances with the Rossoneri. One could hope, however, that the new manager will act as a reference point for everyone, even if leaders in the shape of players are also needed.

There is another farewell that also deserves a mention, but not for the same reason as the others: Mattia Caldara. The flop from Juventus turned 30 (!) earlier this month and he has still only made two official appearances for the club, despite joining in 2018. Major injury struggles and multiple loan spells are behind this, of course, and his exit means the Rossoneri will save a hefty €9.11m on the balance sheet.

We broke down the figures of several departures in our budget prediction for the summer mercato, which we would advise you all to read. In any case, Caldara is certainly categorised as a necessary departure and not a sentimental one by any means, so let’s try to shift focus away from him. As such, we would also recommend reading the feature on our Danish Viking Kjaer, which was published on the site.

To wrap things up, the game against Salernitana is a chance for Stefano Pioli to end his tenure on some kind of positive, especially since the Curva Sud will return to chanting for the final 45 minutes. It should be a rather beautiful departure for all the departing Milan men, in other words, and it should help the management as well as the players realise what they will be missing.

News Bulletin

➤ Milan Primavera let a three-goal lead slip against Torino as they drew 3-3, but that was enough to secure a spot in the play-offs where they will meet Lazio on Saturday. Ignazio Abate spoke about his pride after the game, while Jan-Carlo Simic and Kevin Zeroli also reflected on the season so far.

➤ The AC Milan Women ended the season in the best way with a 3-1 victory at home against Sampdoria. Asllani scored twice and Marinelli added another late on, while there was an emotional tribute to Laura Fusetti. Meanwhile, Nadia Nadim is expected to take on a Zlatan-esque role with the Rossonere.

➤ Last week we exclusively revealed that Milan were stepping up their attempts to land Joshua Zirkzee as contacts with Bayern Munich and the player's agents were well underway, and this has been confirmed by sources like Fabrizio Romano more recently.

➤ The new manager front seems to change with each bulletin, and it is now Lille boss Paulo Fonseca who appears to be the frontrunner. Despite the fact Roberto De Zerbi is now free, it doesn't seem to have warmed Milan up much and Sergio Conceicao is barely being mentioned any more.

➤ The issue of renewals continues to command space in the newspaper columns. It has been suggested that Theo Hernandez wants to stay but his salary demands have surprised Milan, while Mike Maignan also wants a big pay increase after a difficult season on a personal level.

➤ Our longer reads this week include a look back at the Milan legacies of Olivier Giroud and Simon Kjaer, the importance that Rafael Leao will have when it comes to the main two decisions this summer, reasons to be optimistic for the future and why De Zerbi could present a perfect marriage.