AC Milan director Paolo Maldini has confirmed that Olivier Giroud will soon sign for the club, as well as revealing that talks over Franck Kessie’s renewal are ongoing.
A number of sources have reported that Giroud is due in Italy within the next 24 hours to undergo his medicals ahead of joining the Rossoneri, but the general consensus is that another younger centre-forward could arrive with Kaio Jorge of Santos and Julian Alvarez of River Plate.
Maldini spoke to DAZN at an event to mark the launch of the 2021-22 fixture list and he was questioned on a number of different topics, starting with the imminent arrival of Giroud and whether he will be the only striker to sign.
“Tomorrow Giroud should arrive. We have a young couple in front (laughs). Olivier is a champion and a fresh winner of the Champions League. He is a reliable player and who can bring experience to the team that is very young,” he said (via MilanNews).
“A young striker could also arrive, we want to do things well and lay the foundations of the team immediately and then look at other shots towards the end of the market.”
After a season in which he helped Milan qualify for the Champions League once again, Donnarumma was the big hero for Italy in the European Championships, saving two penalties in the final against England. However, he has left for Paris Saint-German, and Maldini admits that his exit ‘hurts’.
“It is an important loss for us even if we have acquired a great goalkeeper. He is a boy who is born in our nursery and to see what he has done in Milan, the fact that history is interrupted hurts a little. We think about the past but the future is more fascinating,”
Finally, on the renewal of Kessie: “In the future there will be Kessie. We are working on his renewal.”
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