Alexis Saelemaekers will return to the club after his loan spell with Bologna but the management have already made a decision on his future, a report claims.
According to what is being reported by MilanNews, Bologna have decided not to use the €12m option to buy that they have for Saelemaekers. With Thiago Motta having left for Juventus, they are clearly looking for different profiles for their new head coach Vincenzo Italiano.
Saelemaekers had a positive season with Bologna and that is why Milan are waiting and hoping that concrete offers from other clubs arrive, also because with Christian Pulisic and Samuel Chukwueze present in the squad, there is not much room on the right wing.
His future will therefore be away from Milan and the directors are awaiting offers from teams that might be interested in the Belgian after his positive year out on loan with the Emilian club, in which he racked up four goals and three assists.
It is worth noting that Motta ended up at Juve and the Bianconeri have been linked with him given how important he was in Bologna’s run to securing a Champions League spot, but there is nothing too concrete or advanced at this stage it seems.
15-20 mln, that’s his market value now.
Would Juve fans riot if they sold Chiesa for 30M and bought Saele for 20M?
A bit weird to see Chiesa going for 30 mln, but if they manage to get Douglas Luiz for ~20 mln + 2 redundant players, that will be the bargain of the summer.
Such an amazing player Milan will have no problem selling him. Clubs are already lining up
Where are those Saladmaker lovers to see the lenght of the line
Thats the Point haha. I couldnt Watch the Games, when he played. He had a decent Saison with Bologna. BUT Bologna an no other Team has big interest in him. Lets be happy in Someone is buying him for 10 mil
I said it a few times. I had a love/hate relationship with the saladman. He freaking had it all but could not put it all together and it was infuriating. Some games he could dribble 2-3 guys easily and shot to the stands. Some games you could see amazing shooting, only to be an idiot defending or crossing. ughhh. on paper he was fast, hard worker, could dribble, had a strong shot, alert in defense etc. In practice, you pick one and crap the rest. lol. He didnt improved, that’s just who he is. Great kid tho
I feel like nobody is even considering the idea of repositioning him to wing-back. tell me if I’m wrong but I though he was fantastic there, lots of heart, good defence, good at driving the ball up the field. he’s just not a goal threat, which is why I think he would be great there. maybe he doesn’t want to, still just a thought
Agreed. That’s his original position and it is what he is good at. I don’t understand why he doesn’t simply stick with it; he could have a bright future as a RB.
Because he is terrible defensively.
Now we can all eat a salad
Maybe play him as RB? With him and Calabria, we dont need to spend on a new RB for now.
His defense is actually very good for a winger. But i doubt he has what it takes to be a RB, especially positioning wise. Maybe more a RWB if Fonseca decides to play with 3 or 5 at the back.
If we do get Zirkzee, then maybe it’s worth keeping Alexis? He’ll have a lot of competition but as the LW backup for Leao and fourth choice winner, would that be a problem? He clearly had good rapport with Zirkzee last season and he’s not going to bring in window-changing numbers anyway… I’d rather have him in the side than Romero at the moment. Also good, hard-working right-back cover.
Good point.
But from what I understand he was unhappy last season because he didn’t have as much time as he wanted. If he comes back he’s gonna be a deputy (to either Leao or Pulisic) and his playtime will certainly be limited.
We’ve seen his highs (not high enough for Milan) and we’ve seen his lows. He’s a mid table team player.
Where do you use him? Over Leao/Okafor? Puli/Chuk?
Answer: offload him.
He can be leao deputy he played leao wing when he was at Bologna
People are desperately searching for a position somewhere in the team to slot a player in. Is that not reason enough to know that Salad isn’t qualified to be a Milan player? – a player without a defined position. Have seen suggestions of playing him as DM too because he’s energetic and hustles. Basically he’s a bit of everything but not enough of any. Not offensive enough for a big team nor defensive enough (he gives dangerous fouls with clumsy tackles in the area). Finding a better position is what you do for academy kid. Salad’s been playing for years yet still no one knows whether his best position is goalkeeper! Having a player that can play multiple positions is great but will he be happy with the role Romero have had before going out on loan? He’s not 29. He also feels he’s a bright future ahead. He wasn’t ok being 2nd choice winger the other season now some expect him to be with 5th choice. Let him go and be happy even on another loan if permanent move proves difficult. He’s absolutely not needed in Milan.
I rate him. Try him as RB during preseason as that was his natural position when we signed him from Anderlecht. He would be much better than Emerson Royal. If he doesn’t impress we can sell him for good money.