Milan: Diaz, a goal worth (over) 20 million. Even to lend a hand… to himself

Snow, sleet, rain and money. Yesterday a bit of everything rained on Milan in London and inevitably the economic side joins that of the sporting and emotional enterprise. From today Gerry Cardinale will be able to tour the States pushing the Milan brand with even greater force – “Now the club is among the top eight in Europe, is there anyone else interested in investing?” – And, at the same time, he knows that the benefits brought about by the Champions League’s entry into the G8 will have positive repercussions in terms of budget and planning on the market.

Extra

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At the budget level, starting from a projection that would see the next one with a minus sign deflated from -66.5 million to around -25, it is reasonable to imagine that the next one could go very close to breaking even. A financial feat – just like the Scudetto was on the pitch – considering that the 2019-20 financial year ended with a deep red of 194.6, which completes a vicious path in which the AC Milan club, in addition to falling within the parameters Uefa, he also managed to be a winner and return to being a protagonist in Europe. The quarterfinals mean over 20 million extra. Extra because obviously it is a desired but not budgeted figure. The primary objective was to overcome the group stage, but entering the G8 brings many more money: 10.6 million in participation, another 9 from the box office (as happened in the round of 16), plus the increase in the market pool, marketing and any prizes from sponsors.

Scissors

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And here then the management can explore some situations in a different light. The double round with Tottenham, for example, gave Diaz a leading role. Technically the quarter-finals bear his signature, thanks to the goal at San Siro. But even in London, Spanish was among the liveliest (making the gap at the moment with teammate De Ketelaere stand out even more). Trivializing, it could be said that the money brought in for the quarter-finals could be used to redeem the player capable of getting Milan this far. Obviously it doesn’t work like this, but there is no doubt that as the weeks go by, Brahim’s prices continue to increase. Also because June is approaching and Milan had agreed with Real to update themselves before the end of the season to understand which direction to take.

Orientation

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As in various other situations, finishing in the top four will be a decisive factor, but the Diaz deal rests on fairly solid foundations: he would like to stay with the Rossoneri and Pioli is pushing for this. Of course, it doesn’t just boil down to that. In the middle there is a right of redemption set two years ago at 22 million (with a “blanco” counter-buy at 27), a figure on which Milan intend to work in order to lower it. It will therefore be necessary more than anything else to understand Real’s willingness to meet the Devil, but in the meantime the Rossoneri’s orientation is starting to take shape. And in a trocar that throughout the season was – for various reasons – often incomplete, that’s already good news. With Diaz who, thanks to the qualifying goal with relative proceeds, could lend a hand (also) to himself.