Galliani: “Pjaca? We’ll see. Juve never wanted De Sciglio…”

By Oliver Fisher -

Now joint-CEO of Milan, Adriano Galliani addressed the media at Vincenzo Montella’s press conference, and kept his cards close to his chest.

“Today we present our new Coach Vincenzo Montella,” he told the Press. “He was chosen not only for the results that he obtained, but also for the beautiful game by which he obtained them.

“Vincenzo puts his faith in good football, and he plays the way we’ve spent 30 years believing football should be played.

“We’re working tirelessly on the market. I am inundated at every hour of the day with questions about the market and I have to run away. I’m not going to say anything today, either. I’d better keep quiet, because everything I say turns back against me!”

“The transfer campaign is restricted, so I apologise but I won’t answer anything about the transfer campaign,” Galliani stated to reporters.

“He’s a top player who is followed by a lot of clubs. We’ll see, we’ll see.

“Being pictured in Zagreb? Amazing, the problem is that now everyone goes around the world with a camera in their pocket.

“Ronaldo and I are in pictures in every restaurant in Milan! It wasn’t like I went around taking pictures.

“One evening I was sitting quietly and you could see that I was serious. There were two young girls beside me and I avoided risks.

“Yesterday, before I left, the owner of the restaurant asked me for a picture and in a minute it was seen around the world.

“We either have to lock ourselves in the house or be rude. At the start I tried to say that I wasn’t in Zagreb.”

Mattia De Sciglio had an impressive Euro 2016 but Galliani denies that the player will move.

“He hasn’t asked me to be sold, or made any kind of request. He’s fine, he’s back to the De Sciglio we’ve always known.

“With his scar he’s more interesting, he has a harder face and looks less like a kid!

“There’s never been any offer from Juventus. Milan wouldn’t sell him to Juventus, and there hasn’t been any offer.

“The only team which seriously asked for De Sciglio was Napoli, and we politely said no. They were the only club in the world [who asked].”

“Certainly I’ll remain [joint] CEO of Milan whatever happens, at least until the closing,” Galliani confirmed.

“When that time comes we’ll evaluate what to do. That’s the absolute truth. I’m not worried about what will happen in October, but what will happen in July and August.

“My commitment is total and absolute up until the closing, which is expected to take place at the end of September.

“Whatever decision is taken, it’ll be agreed with President [Silvio] Berlusconi, with whom I have a bond for life. I’ve been with him for 37 years, so all that will be agreed with Berlusconi. Right now I’m really not thinking about it.”

With that settled, Galliani was then quizzed about his recruitment plans for the summer.

“There’s a definite mission, we’ve talked about the transfer market. The mission is always the same: to win, to convince, to entertain.

“That’s the idea that we’ve had for 30 years now. What’s positive is that the President really wants to talk about football.

“We’ll make every effort to strengthen the team on the transfer market. We’ll share it, and every decision must be signed off by me and [Nicholas] Ganickoff.

“If we don’t agree then we’ll move on to another target. We’re working very well, and on a personal level I’m adapting.

“If the preliminary agreement is signed, the closing will be after the closing of the transfer window. We’ve achieved some goals, there are others we’re still reaching for.

“Certainly both Ganickoff and I have talked with Montella, and he’s clear about what he wants. We’ll try to satisfy him as much as possible and get some important players.

“In my mind it’s clear what players he wants, and he knows it.

“As things stand Milan could keep all the players we have, because we have 29, four of whom are Under-21, which takes you to the 25.

“Some will surely leave, but in theory we could register for the League now. We’re fortunate to have so many Under-21s, we have [Gigi] Donnarumma, [Davide] Calabria, [Alessio] Romagnoli, [Manuel] Locatelli and [Jose] Mauri.

“Once we were accused of being too old and now we have youngsters. We’re creating a young, strong team which can aim for any goal once the transfer campaign is over.

“There’s work to do, but we’ve started well.

“The transfer campaign is very simple right now: [Gianluca] Lapadula and [Leonel] Vangioni have come in, [Michael] Agazzi, [Gabiriel] Paletta, [Jherson] Vergara, [Alessandro] Matri, Suso and [Simone] Verdi have returned from loan and [Stephan] El Shaarawy has been transferred to Roma.

“Five players left at the end of their contract and I want to take this opportunity to thank them. The squad has already changed and it’ll be further modified.

“We have a clear idea who should leave, but of course we’ll have to find a team to buy them and team who the player will accept. It’s very difficult to find a ‘wife’ for a player who wants to leave Milan.

“That also applies to buying new players. The brand is very strong and the city is known throughout the world.

“No-one says no to Milan, it’s just an issue of finance. Getting them to leave is more complicated.

“Football is all about ups-and-downs. Don’t forget that five years ago, Juventus were coming off two seventh-place finishes.

“By changing Coach and players they turned things around.”

Finally, Galliani was asked about the potential Chinese takeover, but was reluctant to comment.

“The negotiation is being conducted between Fininvest and the Chinese group, so I can’t give any answers on that.

“Milan is the object, not the subject. Questions should be directed to Fininvest. That aside, I don’t know the names of the investors.

“Berlusconi? He’s dealing with it well, because he’s convinced it’s for the good of Milan. He remains a huge fan of Milan, and he’s very calm and confident of doing something good for Milan.

“He’s always said that when it comes to the team he makes decisions with his heart, not from a business perspective.

“He’s sad, but he’s convinced this is the best solution to ensure a bright future for Milan.”

Quotes via footballitalia

Tags AC Milan Galliani Italy Mercato Milan News Pjaca Rossoneri Serie A
Serie A Standings

Live football scores . Current table, fixtures & results.