The mercato has been open for nearly a month, but AC Milan are yet to make a senior signing, and club legend Billy Costacurta has offered some reassurance to the fans, defending the slow start to the mercato.
In an ideal world, Paulo Fonseca would have his ideal, fully fit Matchday 1 side at the club now, but rushing things never bodes well in football, let alone the mercato, and this is why Milan must be smart.
Opportunities arise throughout the window, and players who are unavailable on July 1 might be sold for a heavily reduced price at the end of the mercato, and vice versa. Therefore, it is important to take time when assessing opportunities, especially with the money being thrown around nowadays.
The Rossoneri know what areas they need to strengthen, and they have identikits for each role, meaning they may not be looking for specific names, but rather specific talents, so they can afford to bide their time somewhat, but this may not be the case for much longer.
Regardless of this, there have been some criticisms about the delay in introducing any senior players to the squad, especially after the ending of the Joshua Zirkzee debacle. However, Costacurta has looked to reassure the fans when speaking to Gazzetta dello Sport this morning, and his comments have been relayed by Milan News.
The first thing he will have to do?
“Sort out the defensive phase. A year ago I said that the performance of the two centre-backs would be decisive, and it wasn’t good. Now I repeat the same thing.”
Don’t you think it’s time to reinforce the centre of the back? Maybe with Pavlovic…
“I’ve read criticism for Milan’s market that hasn’t started yet, I don’t feel I share it. The end of negotiations is more than a month and a half away and there is time. For now we have to applaud Inter, who have made important and intelligent strikes as well as retaining a top player like Lautaro, and wait for Milan’s moves.
“As far as the defence is concerned, really good centre-backs cost a lot of money, and it does not seem to me that Milan’s policy, which I fully support, envisages a certain kind of investment. Fonseca will have to be good at improving the material at his disposal exactly as Motta did at Bologna with Calafiori and Allegri did at Juve with Bremer and Gatti.”