AC Milan have several players out on loan currently and there are three in particular that deserve further attention.
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Loanees can help or hurt a team once their time away has finished. To put it simply, an area might look fine, but once you add one, or in this case, three, players back to the mix, it becomes bloated. So, how can Milan manage this?
The first step is to actually list the trio. This summer, barring any shocks depending on clauses, Ismael Bennacer, Tommaso Pobega and Yacine Adli will all return to Milanello. Immediately, you may think that they are not up to the level required.
However, they can all provide cover and complement others, if allowed to. This, of course, is an issue in itself, as you have to weigh up their value to the squad against their value on the mercato. So, we’ll start there.
Before we get to that, though, if you want to add a bit of excitement to your summer, consider using an online sportsbook.
Market values
Bennacer, who is currently at Marseille – though seemingly not for much longer – has a buy clause in his deal for €14 million, which the club could probably get from elsewhere, perhaps even a little more. Pobega has a buy clause in his move to Bologna of around the same figure, whilst Adli’s Fiorentina deal has a figure of €10m inserted.
For three midfielders there, you have a choice of as much as around €35m, depending on if you get this value or not. However, the key thing is that it will not change much from this range. Selling the three will not get you upwards of €60m, whilst it will also not bring any less than €20-25m.
The next step
So, if the Rossoneri decide to keep them, what value can they provide to the squad? Well, each offers a different profile, all of which could be utilised by Massimiliano Allegri.
Ismael Bennacer, as Oli stated on a recent bonus podcast, stated that the midfielder is comparable to Arturo Vidal, who was a key player for Allegri previously. Pobega provides a bit of an Adrien Rabiot-esque feel to the midfield, whilst Adli is just a generally good technician.
It is also important to remember that they probably would not demand to play every game in the season. So, you’re not running the risk of unsettling a new signing. For example, would Rabiot, or someone else for that matter, be fine missing a few games here and there?
Of course, it is a difficult one to weigh up, but the retention of one, two or even three of the returning midfielders could end up being a saver. Why sell to buy when you can return to stay…