Ballo-Toure and Origi
Mercato News

Like burning money: Cost of Ballo-Toure and Origi on Milan’s accounts

Although they haven’t featured for the club since the 2022-23 season, Fode Ballo-Toure and Divock Origi are still costing money for AC Milan. Indeed, it’s a pretty significant sum the Rossoneri are paying each year. 

Elliott Management and RedBird have certainly been able to clean up Milan’s accounts since 2018, but the situation still isn’t perfect. This is perhaps best evidenced by the costs of Ballo-Toure and Origi, who haven’t played since 2022-23 but remain on the wage bill.

Origi joined the club in the summer of 2022 and signed a contract worth €4m net per year, meaning it costs Milan €5.24m gross every year with the Growth Decree. Furthermore, the Rossoneri paid €660k in commission to his agent, so there is an amortisation of €165k each year.

As for Ballo-Toure, he joined in 2021 for a fee of €5.4m from Monaco, so there is an amortisation of €1.36m every year. He also has a salary of €1m net which costs Milan €1.31m gross with the Growth Decree.

Origi thus costs the club a total of €5.4m every year and Ballo-Toure costs a total of €2.67m every year, for a combined €8.07m every year. Even though the left-back has played three times with Milan Futuro this season, this is still like burning money for Milan.

Ballo-Toure’s contract expires in 2025 so he will leave shortly, even if there isn’t a January move, but Origi has a contract until 2026.

Tags AC Milan Divock Origi Fode Ballo-Toure

49 Comments

    1. Yes and because he refuses to accept a wage cut (or to play in a league he considers “beneath” him like turkey) there’s almost no way to cut Origi. Several other examples but he’s the most glaring.

      Very expensive mistakes, but what is surprising is the fans knew pretty much day one that some players like Ballo Toure or Emerson Royal are way way below the standard required at the top end of Serie A but somehow the directors /algorithm suggested otherwise.

      Both the previous board Maldini etc, and the current one with Moncada pulling the strings. It’s almost baffling these players can even be considered, surely it wasn’t obvious only in hindsight?

      1. Problem with they moneyball logic is this – They still expect to catch number 4th position in serie a, no matter how many garbage players they have in the team.
        So tback than, with Ballo Toure, they got “Theo back up”. Cheap back up which should be fine to play every fifth game. And with Origi they thought they have Girouds back up, who will score 20 goals at season. And they will give him salary 4 million net.

        Oh boy oh boy.

        What actually happen, as more as moneyball players they bring, result was worse and worse. For now 8th position. But that could be worse.

        1. You still don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re making a show of yourself. Moneyball is what Brentford and Brighton do.

          1. Yep. A mistake that Maldini made. I can understand his decision making though. No funds to purchase for a capital cost but enough money in the operating budget to over pay to attract a possible high end player on a free.

      2. You are giving general fans way, way too much credit. The average football fan hadn’t see Ballo Toure player, they’d rarely seen Origi and Emerson Royal play. It’s only fans who follow other leagues that knew what to expect. The average football fans are the ones calling for (choker) Sesko, despite not having seen him play until the Euros. Clubs rightly ignore most fans when it comes to transfers. The real issue here is the Italian press. The Italian press are garbage. In the UK, if a big club was linked with a crap player, the press and media would ridicule them (as was the case when Lenglet was being linked to EPL clubs), the Italian press, however, say nothing because they’re just as out of touch as most fans.

    3. Then they’d need to fire every single director of football since most transfers end in failure (see the thousands of transfers every single season many of whom struggle and/or are moved on almost immediately)

    4. Because the mistakes he made are SO much worse than the ones we’re making right now.

      Maldini, for all his mistakes, is far superior to what we have now.

  3. Moneyball moneyball

    It is obvious – what they think that they pay less — looks like they pay much more than normal transfer fees.

  4. Isak – you conveniently forgot to mention:

    Chukuweze, Who is burning 4M a season and who cost us 28M…

    Oh ya and the trash that is Emerson who cost us 15M and earns 3M a season???

    🤣🤣🤣

    1. Chuckwueze scored the goal that kept Milan in Europe last season

      all Origi did was make people like u look stupid got hyping him up

      1. Origi won the premier league and champions league.

        The question we should be asking is how did modern football ruin another footballer.

        But people prefer to mock and gossip.

      2. Hahahahahaha!!!!

        There he is! @uberhulk’s kissing cousin lol.

        Ahhhh….poor little Boulden. How’s mom? Tell her I will be by again next week hahahahahha

        Good bless u kid. Don’t worry – I will leave you some lunch money on the counter when I leave 😉

  5. Folks here causlly forget that Moncada was lead scout with previous management and was the one proposing players to M&M.

    But if we are pointing fingers at M&M, they got Ibra, Giroud and Origi for attack. They all came for free. 2 of them got us Scudetto and got us to CL semis. So 2 out of 3 is not a bad outcome is it? Let alone other pieces that came for peanuts and were integral part of the Scudetto winning team.

    Now we have RedBird’s recruitment department and technical department spearheaded by Moncada. He spent 200 millions in two summers for 15 players where only 3 of them turned out to be added value. We’re sitting at 8th in Serie A and are currently still in CL elimination spot while having a complete breakdown on ownership-management-coach-players-fans axe.

    3. @Ted Giroud wasn’t free sir. Chelsea extended his optional year and cash in.
      I am not devaluing M&M works but letting Dollaruma, Kessie, the snake Hakan go for free wasn’t smart. Between Kessie and Dollaruma that’s at least 60 millions. That could have strengthen the same team that reach the semi. Nobody ever thought of that
      Until we meet again

      1. Ah yes my bad sir, Giroud was around 4 millions. That practically free for a player who got us to Scudetto. But that was not the point of my comment. Comparing these two management, M&M still lead by far. RedBird are now in their third season where we’re struggling to qualify for next season’s CL spot. M&M got us to Scudetto in their third season, CL semis in fourth. Considering those who left on free, weren’t they assuring to both club and the fans they’ll extend? And in the end left because owners didn’t want to lift their salary cap even by a dime?

    1. Wtf? He’s gonna be 39 in March.
      Who in their right mind would put a 39yo as a spearhead in their attack?
      If a 39yo is the best we can do might as well close down the club right now.

  8. It’s incredible how clueless some fans here are. They are blaming “Moneyball” for the Origi and Ballo signings, when both were done by Paolo Maldini and had absolutely nothing to do with Moneyball.

    This said, yes, our Mercato strategy has been off for a long while. I mean, we passed on a free transfer of Dybala!!! Then we got Morata and Abraham who are not bad players but aren’t prolific goal scorers. Meanwhile our cousins across town have Lautaro and Thuram.

    We lost one of the two most essential players in the Scudetto year, Kessié (the other essential one being Rafael Leão, whom the clueless posters here keep asking for him to be sold) and Kessié was never properly replaced, Mercato after Mercato. We kept playing 4-2-3-1 while never hiring players who would be good for this formation.

    We got rid of Kalulu to hire Emerson Royal!!! How in the hell did we do that???

    We renewed the contract of Jovic which we didn’t need to do, but shipped out Colombo who is a much better player and is eligible for European lists. Again, what the hell???

    Not to forget, not a Mercato issue, but we hired a mediocre loser called Paulo Fonseca when the MUCH more competent Sérgio Conceição was available and willing, and took 6 months to correct this blunder, when the season was already lost.

    That is, we have amateur managers who are miles away from what it takes to manage a club of the importance and tradition of AC MIlan.

    Of the dozens of recent signings, arguably there are only three who fully paid off, with no ups and downs, but rather good work in most games (not all games because no player, not even Lionel Messy, play well every single time, but most games they’ve been excellent) : Pulisic, Reijnders, and Fofana. That is a rate of success that is unacceptable for a club of Milan’s stature. Other signings had the occasional good game, but for the most part, were a disaster.

    It is impressive how the few posters here who properly understand Italian football were right about most issues, over the supposedly professionals who manage the club.

    I’d rather see someone like ACM1899 managing the club, than clowns like Ibra and Moncada.

  9. We can’t continue to treat elite footballers like throwaway items of fast fashion.

    Origi was generally decent at Liverpool and for Belgium, and the bigger question should be how he lost form when he arrived at Milan.

    It’s essential we answer that question because the exact same thing is happening with Morata and Abraham.

    And lazily dismissing them as ‘not good enough’ isn’t getting us anywhere. It’ll just mean we sign 10 players for each position in 10 years whilst we struggle to finish 4th.

    It’s up to the club – management and coaches – to get the most out of the players at their disposal. The club who does this best wins.

    As for Ballo-Touré, he served his function as cover for Theo and gets to retire with a Scudetto and African Nations Cup. He’s done better than most players who will ever play the game.

    1. Elite.. bahahahahahha.
      All those so called elite players are playing where now that they left Milan?

      Origi was always a fringe player.

      Elite.. bahahahahhahahhaha.

    2. You are only defending Origi because your idol Paolo Maldini was responsible for the stupid blunder of hiring him.

      Origi is one of the worst players in history who ever downed the AC Milan shirt. As a striker for Milan, he had a grand total of two goals. He is incredibly bad, clueless, and can’t score from two feet if the goal is fully empty in front of him.

      But hey, he was Maldini’s idea, so who is surprised that “Maldini’s Heir” would defend him? LOL

      1. Nope.

        I’m defending Origi like I defend so many players because I’m sick of all the smart arses writing off endless players whilst they play fantasy football.

        I’m defending Origi because Morata AND Abraham AND [whoever comes next] will be the next Origi.

        I’m defending Origi because Milan have signed at least one CF every single season for the past 20 seasons.

        1. You are absolutely right on a human level, but the fact is that football IS a cattle market and has been for the longest time – 30 years at least.

          For whatever reason the conditions at Milan and what Origi (clearly a very good footballer) needs to be comfortable, were not aligned. That’s a shame, but it’s the theatre darling; the show goes on.

          I don’t blame him for sticking around though. Football’s history is full of characters who didn’t crave the limelight. If he’s happy banking 4m a year for simply calling himself a footballer without actively being one, all power to him.

          1. But a club like Milan shouldn’t be engaged in the cattle market.

            THAT is the issue.

            In the farce that is the modern football transfer market (and the starting point is probably Bosman) the teams that keep their focus have a huge advantage.

            The top clubs in Europe generally keep their focus. It’s not just about money. It’s about focusing on quality over quantity; only signing players who improve the squad; only signing one or two players in key positions; not endlessly in revolutions.

            The teams that manage the farce the best do the best.

  10. These problems were easy to solve in the old days as Berlusconi would personally address the issue ;). Nowadays is much harder, but still clubs are finding solutions. Sometimes extreme like Pogba.

  11. I thought both of these guys would have balls to move on and PLAY elsewhere.

    It’s one thing to get paid and do nothing, but you would think your own ego and dignity would mean you move on.

    I wouldn’t stay at my company if I wasn’t wanted/needed even if I was getting paid.

    2. The fact is, Ballo and Origi still see themselves better than most of Milan current players and believe if they are given much playing time, they will excel. Playing consistently builds up players and if I were a coach at Milan I will integrate them to fight for a spot rather than enjoyingfree money. Anyway Milan is gradually becoming a midtable club.

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