More Premier League clubs have come forward and expressed an interest in signing Yacine Adli from AC Milan after Brentford did initially, according to a report.
Calciomercato.com confirm that Adli is no longer part of Milan’s plans and the management are trying to understand what the market can offer in terms of a transfer fee, which would provide funds to reinvest elsewhere.
The Franco-Algerian has already rejected the idea of moving to a club in Saudi Arabia and he would like to stay to fight for his place at Milan, but a call from a club in one of the biggest European leagues could make him change his mind.
Something is moving in the Premier League for Adli. After Brentford, two other English clubs have asked Milan for information on the former Bordeaux man, namely Leicester and Nottingham Forest. It is a concrete interest that has not yet resulted in any official offers.
Adli risks being left out of the Serie A squad list and in the next few days he will have a meeting with Milan and his agent to talk and evaluate the proposals that have arrived. He has a valuation of around €14m, but this is negotiable.
The Premier League could be the right solution even if the player still hopes to convince Paulo Fonseca, yet this remains a very difficult mission considering that the Rossoneri are working to sign at least one new central midfielder.
Gonna have to pry his cold dead hands off Milan for him to leave… I like him. I just wish he was better at any one position he played…
He needs muscles, why he didn’t grow them properly is weird…
I love his hustle but he just doesn’t have the quality. You can see every move takes him a half second longer to execute than his peers. Against Barca, I don’t think he completed a single pass.
Pirlo was just like that when he joined milan.. I think Adli work fine in a 3 man midfield with a 2 DM protecting and allow him to use the ball just like Ambrose and Gattuso does the dirty work for Pirlo.
Pirlo played in a different era of football. Much slower tempo, more tactical and football based on mostly skill.
Today’s football is based on athleticism, physicality, speed, and stamina.
As great as Pirlo was in his era, he won’t be able to play in today’s era. He’ll be a liability. In his era you could hide his deficiencies. The midfielders of today would bully him and run past him like he is not even there.
The Adli – Pirlo analogies need to stop.
That’s right. Go back and watch a champions league match from 20 years ago. It looks like slow motion compared to today. Plus the tactical intelligence and passing ability of Pirlo was incredible. Adli, is average at best.
That’s a joke, Pirlo was world class. Look at his midfield opposition in the 00s with Milan and Nazionale and the 10s with Juve. How can you say the midfielders in todays game are that much better?
I’ll take Milan’s CL teams from 05 and 07 against most of the recent CL winners.
I didn’t say that the midfielders are better. Try to read. I said the midfielders of today are much more physical and faster. A midfielder with the physical stature of Patrick Viera was a rarity in his day. Today you have at least 1 of those on every team.
Look at Rodri. Tchouameni. Rice. Loftus Cheek
Just look at Kessie physicality compared to Gattuso.
Pirlo won’t be able to keep up with the speed and physicality of today’s game.
Pirlo was world class in his era. What worked back then isn’t going to work today.
No, it’s more about skill. Is Luka Modric, big and fast? Seems to win CL’s. The problem is, Adli is no Modric.
Modric is a fine example. I bet most people here objected him joining Milan 5-6 years ago when it was rumored he could come just because he was already back then “too old and slow”, am I right or am I right? 🙂
We’ve been educated here sooooo many times (per day) that pace is everything in football. If you aren’t fast, you’re cr@p. Right? 😀
That’s a bit of a stretch, Pirlo was great pretty much up until his last season with Juventus in 2014/15 when he was 36 years old, so unless you want to make the argument that today’s football is MUCH different than barely 9 years ago, I don’t that as much of an argument.
Every since I got into football, I always hear that “this era is much more athletic, faster,… than the previous one”. I don’t say that there is no difference, but it’s vastly exagerated.
Now back to the Pirlo-Adli comparison, them being not good runners is pretty much where the common point stops.
Pirlo didn’t take forever to make a pass.
Pirlo is a better set-piece taker than any player in the world today (aside from Messi if you want to compare whole careers) and was even better defensively even if we take into account who played with both players.
Pirlo, even by his era’s standards was a rare player who wasn’t supposed to succeed but Ancelotti found a winning formula.
Football changed when Bayern and the German teams started implementing gegenpress.
Today’s football is much more wide open, much more up and down. That means that a midfielder has to cover a lot of ground. Pirlo won’t be able to keep up, because he has to defend as well. You guys only think about one side of the pitch, and talk about his ability to pass. We have people saying that players like Reijnders, Musah, RLC are bad defensively and those are great athletes, what do you think those people will say if Pirlo was there?
Back in his Milan days , teams were not pressing. They were defending by parking the bus, so he was able unbothered to survey the pitch and pass the ball. Go look how Pirlo did in 2010 when Alex Ferguson made Park press Pirlo all game long.
In the 03 final vs Juventus, Milan back 4 was Nesta & Maldini as CB, Costacurta as a RB and Kaladze as a LB. If you play Costacurta and Kaladze at full backs today, you will be down 3-0 by the 15th minute. They will get destroyed by today’s wingers. Just picture Leao going vs Costacurta.
You say there isn’t much difference between the eras in football.
Today and the last few years we had players scoring easily over 30, 40 even 50 goals a season. Players like Ciro Immobile, even Haaland, but back 20 years ago, much better strikers like Sheva, R9, Batistuta, etc couldn’t come close to 30.
Are today’s strikers better than those of 20 years ago? Hell NO! But because of the way football is played today it is much easier to score.
Also, Modric is a much better athlete and more physical player than Pirlo. He is just small in stature.
Pirlo was great for his era. Football has changed dramatically since he played.
@Z: Gegenpressing has its origins in the Dutch teams of the 60s, then Sacchi’s Milan. It was rejuvinating today by coaches like Ragnick and Klopp.
These different styles of football (pressing, parking the bus, possession,…) do dominate the world in some sense but they are also characteristics of some leagues. Germans and English never parked the bus (or in an extensive matter) and Italians were always slow (Graeme Souness made the comment that 80s serie A was much slower than English championship when he played with Sampdoria). And coincidentally, when football was about “parking the bus” it was when Italian and Spanish teams were the best in the world, when English took over again, it was about athleticism.
So when you say that Pirlo had the luxury of scanning the field without being bothered, I can say that he was lucky to be Italian. Had he been english, he would probably never made it to a top team even in the early 2000s. I think a player like Pirlo would do wonders in today’s Inter for example (with some adjustments of course).
“In the 03 final vs Juventus, Milan back 4 was Nesta & Maldini as CB, Costacurta as a RB and Kaladze as a LB. If you play Costacurta and Kaladze at full backs today, you will be down 3-0 by the 15th minute.”
That’s an if. Guardiola did show that you can play with 4 CBs who aren’t even that great defensively and still win the UCL against these fast, athletic teams.
“Are today’s strikers better than those of 20 years ago? Hell NO! But because of the way football is played today it is much easier to score.”
I agree but I don’t see how this relate to general athleticism.
Today’s players are more athletics than those of the 80s who were more athletic than during the 50s,… Yet football was easier to score in the 50s, then it became dull in the 80s and again the Goal per Game rose again starting from 2010.
It’s more of a tactical thing rather than athleticism. I could also add that defensive midfielders from 30 years ago would be center backs today because they had passing abilities as well as defensive ones while old defenders were only about defense, hence the increase in goal scoring today.
“I agree but I don’t see how this relate to general athleticism.”
The game is wide open. The way football was played in EPL 20 + years ago, up and down, benefits the better prepared and the more athletic players.
Who are Milan best players?
Theo and Leao.
What is their biggest strength?
Their athleticism. They run past players like they are not there.
What are Musah, RLC best strength? Their athleticism.
How about in defense, Tomori, Thiaw? Athleticism. Sure as hell isn’t tactical and positioning awareness.
Pep proved nothing. Kyle Walker who is his RB is one of the best athletes to ever play football.
Pirlo isn’t playing over Hakan at inter. Hakan work rate defensively, Pirlo can’t touch.
Pirlo was great in his era or the way you said lucky to be Italian. I’d say lucky to play in that era.
Pirlo cannot play over Hakan at Inter when you are the coach! No other person will sit Pirlo for any current Inter player in any midfield role. “He’ll be pressed. He’ll be hassled”. Try see how often in a match were opponents getting physical contact with Pirlo.. very rarely compared to 99% of past and present midfielders. Pirlo passes the ball before you’re arm length close to him and mind you ,Pirlo is a very good dribbler when you’re coming at him with speed. Ask the fast physical England(they were) in the Quarter finals of Euro 2012!. ,And about the J.S.Park man marking, Pirlo was still able to make some important moves/passes.. now let a J.S.Park man mark not just Hakan but your current best midfielder and see how it goes! Pirlos way of football is unique for a midfielder in front of the defense and with the right setup to favor his characteristics, a prime Pirlo would be comfortable in any current team and bossing.
Incorrect. Much slower? No, it wasn’t. The EPL was probably quicker. Sacchi’s Milan played at insane speed, one of the most athletic teams of all time. Pirlo excelled because he had 10x the talent of Adli and two of the all-time great DMs shielding him at Milan (Gattuso & Ambrosini).
Did Pirlo play on Sachi’s Milan?
Why are you talking about Sachi’s Milan?
We are comparing the era when Pirlo played vs today.
Sacchi’s era was 10 years prior. Football evolves every 10 years.
Sachi’s DM was Rijkaard who was a great what? Athlete.
He leaves Milan, brings in Desailly, another great athlete.
Today you cannot shield anyone. Every player has to carry their own weight, especially defensively.
Adli’s game is much better suited for Pirlo’s era, than Pirlo’s game and physical ability for today’s era.
Seedorf might be the best player in the world if he played today, because he combined athleticism, strength, speed, technique, football IQ, all in 1.
Pirlo talent, football IQ and skill without the atleticism would not help him in todays football.
100%
Less individual skill. More system players. EURO was proof of that. Hands down one of the worst competitions for skill to date.
The players today wouldn’t be anywhere close to the players 90’s – 00’s.
” Hands down one of the worst competitions for skill to date. ”
Only a couple of players showed glimpses of what they can do (e.g. Nico Williams) but in general, it was a very boring and dull tournament.
Wrong on all levels, clearly you haven’t really watched how Pirlo plays. Which is why at over 30 he won silverware with Juve, and they made their entire play style around him. His positioning between the ball and his opponent, vision and scanning nullifies strength and speed. He cannot be bullied, only fouled.
You couldn’t have said it better. He could never be bullied only fouled.
Pirlo was masterful as you said with incredible vision, technique, unmatched awareness & feints and a brilliant passer.
He would have a field day with today’s on rushing pressers , sometimes he would just barely drop a shoulder and throw top class opponents off, winning their respect in the middle of the pitch.
Not only was he world class he was unique amongst them and would have played and excelled in any era. For those who were lucky to watch him would never dispute this.
Bro you’re underrating Pirlo’s pace but moreso agility which compensates for the perceived lack of pace u mentioned. He can guile his way out of tricky situations like he did vs England’s aggressive bigger mids for instance. Also it’s difficult to say if players can play in one era vs the next but his career did span two “decades” with distinct types of football being played, with one bei g closer the the current era.
“Also it’s difficult to say if players can play in one era vs the next but his career did span two “decades” with distinct types of football being played, with one bei g closer the the current era.”
Also this.
I think the difference in terms of tactics, athleticism,… between Pirlo’s years in Brescia and his final years in Juventus is bigger than between his final years in Juventus and the current era.
Also I maintain that he is defensively underrated. I see him as easily better in that department than either Musah or RLC.
@Giga “Also I maintain that he is defensively underrated.” This!! This is such big facts. Pirlo can tackle extremely well both standing and sliding. His passing game was so good he is often forgotten how well he can defend (same with Seedorf btw). Also we’re forgetting these guys were far more intelligent on the ball than current era.
High hopes when he finally came from Bordeaux. but he made a lot of costly mistakes around our box. And he’s not light on his feet.
I like him as a rotation guy and appreciate his passing and technical abilities. But, he’s slow in doing mostly everything. If we can get even 12mill, we need to take it.
…still I wonder why no coach wants to try him as the CAM. They’d rather play RLC there. Well goodluck to Adli. I like him and I like the fact that he’s technical but it seems no coach knows how to harness or exploit this.
He is way too slow to play as CAM. He needs 4 business days to think about where to pass…
😂😂😂
Could not agree more. A decent player with a wrong position. He can become our attacking midfielder together with Samardzic or Pulisic
I think he will not leave Milan and Italy as of now but he should go on loan to play first team football in any small team and then fight for starting place in Milan.
Did anyone see him play at Bord.? Was he better with more consistent playing time?
Nope no one saw him playing at Bordeaux. Almost no one in the chat actually sees games from all these players who come to Milan, especially young or unknown ones. The chat was like “Adli is coming, our midfield is complete now”. Just like Pobega when he was at Torino who had one “ok” game vs us., just like Reinjders, just like Pavlovic,just like Fofana just like any other name. No, people haven’t seen them play lol 😂
He’d better leave, but I think La Liga would suit him better than Premier League.
Below average player non da Milan imo
Only 1 problem: Adli have that talent but he have no chance to prove.
I normally do not write in posts to voice my opinion as an AC Milan fan. However, this case strikes a nerve for me. You see, if the management would like for the team to be more united, I would refrain from selling Adli right away, give him one more season.
Having played soccer my whole life, we always had that one player in the team that united the group. The player often times was not as good as the others, but his attitude was essential for the team. The attitude would create an environment of hope, patience and much more. In fact, we all vouch for that player in the end of the day. Teams that carry players of such character usually give a message of a greater goal, winning that is, but wining as a team.
Milan right now is investing, as they should, but they should not forget to invest in the correct locker room attitude!
Adli is a type of player I believe if given the confidence by the coach and club will bring the best out of him. A little opportunity was given to him last season and we saw what he can do. The club should focus more on his strength and improve on his weaknesses. He’s still young and still has room for improvement. He’s technically sound and has tactical awareness. The club needs to work on his strength. Furthermore he’s a guy loved in the locker room and have passion for the club, you don’t find this character in many players this days where they can be loyal to a club to a fault. If Fonseca can give him one chance at least till January and play him as an CAM with pulisic I believe we will see the best of Adli. He has those killer pass instincts that can produce goals just like pirlo
RLC is a physical midfielder. Bennacer is good in positioning and has defensive awareness. We don’t need Fofana if RLC can adapt well at this double pivot.
I like the guy… in his heart he has what it takes to be milanista… thats why i hope he succedes elsewhere, since with us, he will not get the chance
Adli=most understand Milan player
Comparisons to Pirlo are in order in terms of play style and not getting enough credits.
Ofcourse his worth or class are no where near Pirlo at this point, but you can’t deny that they are they same type of players, same type pf situation in the same club.
I hope adli gets another chance for Milan, I believe he can be great and who knows, reach pirlo’s level in the coming years….