Udinese winger Gerard Deulofeu has once again expressed his love towards AC Milan after his loan spell at the club in the 2016-17 season.
Milan will be looking to put the disappointment of the Salernitana result behind them and kick off the weekend in the right way by beating Udinese on Friday night, and Deulofeu is certainly familiar with the Bianconeri’s opponents.
The Spaniard joined Milan from Everton in January of 2017 on a six-month loan deal making 18 appearances, scoring four goals and adding three assists. Interestingly, Matteo Moretto reported earlier in the week that Milan are one of the clubs monitoring Deulofeu’s situation at Udinese, where he is under contract until 2024.
He spoke CBS Sports ahead of tonight’s game and reflected upon his time with the Rossoneri, revealed that CEO Adriano Galliani actually wanted to sign him on a permanent basis.
“I think I was the best player those months at AC Milan. I didn’t stay because Barcelona decided to use the buy-back clause but also because AC Milan changed owners and management at the same time,” he said.
“Adriano Galliani wanted me to stay, but he had no power anymore. The new management didn’t want me to stay at the end of the season and so I left.
“I was one of the last signings of Adriano Galliani at the club where he was in charge for 30 years. He was amazing with me. From the first day, he was super nice. He brought me to a restaurant with him, to some events, we had a good relationship. That period in Milan was really good.”
Udinese have had an inconsistent season and now sit three points above the relegation zone.
“Of course we need to do better in the second part of the season,” Deulofeu added. “Italian football has changed in the last years, for sure. Now the level at Serie A is much better than the past, you can see it also in Europe when they play against other important teams. It means we are doing a good job here, every weekend here is tough.”
When asked who impressed him most this season, he spoke about his love for Milan and his admiration for Rafael Leao, a fellow winger by trade.
“In general, I love AC Milan since I played there in the second part of the 2016-17 season. I was impressed by Rafael Leão’s impact this season, and plan on asking for his jersey when we will play them.”
