Carlo Pellegatti believes that the time has come this summer for the Milan management to push the boat out and make use of their improved finances.
Milan are expected to close yet another financial year with a profit, according to widespread reports, as the club’s financial health continues to improve. However, the club are yet to make a signing this summer having baulked at deals like the Joshua Zirkzee one due to extra fees.
As Calcio e Finanza reports, Milan registered a €6.1m profit in 2022-23 and they are expected to close 2023-24 with a profit between €10m and €20m as the key numbers continue to trend in the right direction.
The revenues – according to estimates – should be between €435-440m, an increase of over €30m compared to last season and including over €56m
Pellegatti spoke exclusively to Radio Rossonera and he touched upon the ambitions of the ownership and the need to take risks financially to bring in players that can make an immediate difference.
“In my opinion they don’t have the vision: I would rather spend 20/30 million more to have the possibility that the investment will be returned if I [the club] reach the last 16/quarter-finals of an increasingly rich international competitions.
“If I don’t arrive in the final eight of the Champions League, what savings have you made? Throw them away and get to a balance of -7 rather, which is still for a club that is doing well, which can become more than 30 later. If you invest a little more, the Champions League [revenues] will come back to you.
“We are in this situation because we made a mistake: I don’t blame Maldini and Massara because they had limited budgets, but if they had had different budgets maybe we would have built on a Scudetto-winning framework and they wouldn’t have taken De Ketelaere, Dest, Origi who gave us nothing and there we missed the train.
“I hope they have ambition but even if you risk something on an economic level then the investment will be returned! If you create a team among the top eight in Europe you have a really interesting fixed income, if you save 30 to not bring home 60 it makes no sense.”