AC Milan have concrete interest in signing Leon Goretzka, and some more details about their pursuit have emerged.
For weeks now Milan have been linked with a move for Goretzka, whose contract with Bayern Munich expires at the end of the season and it has already been confirmed that he will depart the Bundesliga giants on a free transfer.
Read SempreMilan ad-free and get access to exclusive news. Click here for a free trial!
However, it is unsurprising that there seems to be strong competition to land a player of the German’s calibre given his quality and what he has won in his career. Being able to offer Champions League football would be a good start, but the Rossoneri have to do more to beat the competition.
Falk: Milan’s Goretzka interest confired
BILD’s Bayern Munich journalist Christian Falk spoke exclusively to MilanNews.it about the future of the former Schalke midfielder and whether Milan can be considered serious contenders to land him.
How much truth is there behind AC Milan’s interest in Goretzka? Have there already been any contacts?
“AC Milan’s interest in Goretzka is concrete: the club have already contacted the player’s agents. Allegri is a big fan of his style of play, but above all, he would like him to join the Rossoneri because he has so much experience.”
What could be the main obstacles to this deal?
“There are two main obstacles to this deal. The first: he earns a lot at Bayern Munich, around €17-18m gross. Obviously, if he were to sign for Milan, his salary would be lower.
“The other issue concerns competition from the Premier League, given that Arsenal inquired last January to see if Leon could move to England immediately.
“Atlético Madrid and Tottenham are also interested… but I can tell you that he would like to play in Serie A. So there’s a good chance.”
How would Goretzka fit into Max Allegri’s team?
“He can play in all three positions in Allegri’s midfield. He can also play in defence, but he’s excellent at making runs and has a nose for goal, which is why Nagelsmann called him up, even though he’s now a substitute at Bayern.
“But these are qualities that are lacking in the national team, and I think he could be a great addition for Milan.”
Are there any teams with the upper hand at the moment, or is everything still evolving?
“As I already told you, Arsenal were interested in him, but I’m not so sure they’ll make a move again in the summer. Atletico could be Milan’s real rival, especially since I think the Colchoneros are the number one option for Goretzka right now.”
Goretzka is basically right footed Rabiot and he would be a great signing, but based on Milan’s track record when it comes to getting free agents over the last decade and a half I’ll be shocked if he is a Milan player next season.
Also, you really gotta hate football to wanna play for Simeone at Atletico. They arguably play the worst football in Europe even though they have plenty of offensive talent. His football is uglier than Allegri’s and Conte’s. And Simeone is by far the highest paid coach in football. All that just to keep finishing behind Real and Barca every year.
This year Atlético Madrid is actually trying to be more offensive, although it is coming at the expense of their defense. This is no longer the same HaramBall/Park the Bus Atlético that once played a 5-5-0 against City.
Also, prior to Diego Simeone, Atlético Madrid never won a domestic title since the mid nineties and didn’t reach the UCL final (back then the EC) since 1974. So actually him winning 2 La Ligas is an over achievement.
Anyways, I do agree that Goretzka could be interesting. Modrić and Rabiot aside, I don’t think we have a better midfielder than him right now.
They have scored 49 goals in the Spanish league so far. Just for comparison Milan have scored 47 in serie A.
The scored a lot of goals vs Tottenham but most of them were gifts by Tottenham defenders and goalkeepers.
Their defense just sucks, but not because they are more offensive.
The key word is “trying”.
They also scored in bunches against Barcelona.
But it’s not about how many they scored. If you watch them this season (or even last season) you’ll notice they don’t sit as deep as they usually do and they have a higher possession compared the previous seasons (55% this season and third, 52% last season, 50% in 2023/24, 2022/23 & 2021/22). They just suck at making use of that.
And many are saying the same thing about this Milan: if Allegri doesn’t play catennaccio, we don’t finish second.
17-18m gross is like 9m/yr wages net, i dunno why quote such a randomly high number and compare our reporting of net wages to gross wages….
Yes, we know. And 9M net is still too high for these owners. The cap is still at 7.5M. And even if we went to 9M, there are a ton of clubs that would pay him 10-12M net, including Atletico. Our only hope, if we’re actually interested and if he’s actually interested, is that our history, stadium, coach, etc., convince him to accept less.
Goretzka isn’t getting any younger and only a couple of clubs MIGHT offer him what he’s currently earning. Whether he likes it or not, he’ll probably need to lower his salary at the next club.
And also… Spurs are interested?! 😀 Does he want to play in the Championship? 😀
I think that after 8th place and 100 of millions lost, RedBird now finally realize that stronger team is necessary year per year.
That doesn’t mean they will definitely bring Goretzka but strong names similar Rabiot, Modric and even Nkunku (compare to attackers they were bringing before) are crucial steps for much heavier season in case club reach to UCL.
Not buying this.