Even though the summer transfer window is three months away, the background noise is getting louder and louder as AC Milan head towards a very important period.
As La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) report this morning, the world is talking about the deal of the decade which will see Kylian Mbappé swapped Paris Saint-Germain for Real Madrid, and the dominoes will fall in all directions.
Regarding Milan there is a lot of talk about the signing of a new striker, but the big variable is the outgoing market because the Rossoneri have have at least three players with the qualities to play in the best teams in the world: Mike Maignan, Theo Hernandez and Rafael Leao.
The stance of the management is clear: Milan do not want to sell their big players but the market is unpredictable and there are various factors that are outside of their control.
Leao and Mbappé
Leao has a €175m clause which at present appears too high for his value. However, PSG have learned that they will lose Mbappé and it is no mystery that Leao is on the list of possible replacements.
Are there live contacts, offers or negotiations? No, for now nothing more than normal phone calls between mercato operators. March and April will allow us to understand more, in the meantime it is just preparatory work.
The power of attorney that Leao signed with Ted Dimvula, a lawyer close to his father, is expiring. In short, the winger is ‘free’ and the picture changes slightly, even if Dimvula has not been a decisive figure in these two years.
His father Antonio remains at the centre of Leao’s interests – his word always carries weight – and Jorge Mendes will inevitably retain a role. He has been following Leao for years and is the most important agent in the world.
Theo and Davies
Theo Hernandez of course has a past at Real Madrid, and the LaLiga giants could influence his future. Alphonso Davies is in their sights, as they believe him to be one of the best left-backs in the world.
Bayern wants to renew Davies’ contract, which expires in 2025, but otherwise they will sell him so as not to lose him for nothing. Considering that Bayern’s future, between management and bench, is anything but clear, the possibility of a change in that role is high.
Theo is simply the strongest player available in the role. At Milan he has a €4.5m net per year contract expiring in the summer of 2026. On the one hand, he is already the highest paid in the squad after Leao. On the other hand, a renewal will have to be discussed soon.
So far nothing has gone beyond the normal dialogues between clubs and agents. Theo is happy at Milan and, under the right conditions, he would willingly stay. There will probably be a meeting in the spring to understand more.
Bayern, PSG, Real Madrid, perhaps Barcelona and the 6-7 Premier League teams with the most purchasing power, in this game, move first. They decide which direction the mercato takes. Milan fans can enjoy their champions and hope that the market takes other paths or offers are resisted.
I don’t think Theo will leave for Germany. Premier, spain or P$$$$G could tempt him
PSG only because his brother plays there. It’s not really a career leap to go and play for oil money in farmer’s league.
Yeah, hard to see Theo being stupid enough to move to France (now). Real or EPL is whole nother thing though…
Pretty sure Lucas came out and said Bayern isn’t a whole lot of fun outside of the club…
Theo looks best in Milan 🙂