AC Milan are planning moves to increase the quality of the attacking trident and give Stefano Pioli more options for his 4-2-3-1 system.
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La Gazzetta dello Sport write that one of either Junior Messias or Alexis Saelemaekers will leave, with the Brazilian being the most likely to say goodbye. In terms of an arrival, Christian Pulisic is currently the hottest name.
The USA international has a Croatian passport meaning he would not take up a non-EU spot, and he is looking for redemption after an uninspiring season and would reduce his salary in order to wear the red and black shirt.
Then there is the No.10 role, with deep reflections underway after Brahim Diaz’s farewell. The club wanted to sign him permanently but Real Madrid didn’t allow it, so he has instead returned to Spain and will renew his contract.
Charles De Ketelaere remains an uncertainty. The comments about him in the media changed from ‘he will certainly stay with us, next season will be the turning point’ to Pioli speaking of ‘evaluations in progress’ on the Belgian. The sure thing is that the hypothesis of a loan will not be considered.
There are therefore two options: staying at Milanello to try to justify the €35m invested in him, or a permanent sale for no less than €28m in order to avoid capital losses.
Another who should leave is Yacine Adli, who got a paltry 138 minutes in his first season, but it seems unlikely to imagine that both he and De Ketelaere will leave in the same summer.
Then there is Daichi Kamada. The managerial overhaul has removed some names from the list of targets but have kept others, and the Japanese playmaker is one of them.
On the left side, Ante Rebic and Divock Origi could both leave given they are not part of Pioli’s plans while they earn €3.5m and €4m net per season respectively. A replacement would be needed, and Noah Okafor’s name could come back into fashion, though he would cost €20m.
