With Kalulu out for 4-5 months and Pellegrino almost two, work is underway for the January transfer window: in addition to the former Pole from Spezia, two other names are on the notebook. On the left is the Miranda track
The appeal begins at the letter T. Thiaw, Malick. Tomori, Fikayo. End of defenders fit and available for Milan-Udinese, tomorrow evening at San Siro. Simon Kjaer is better and will most likely be there but he trained separately during the week and cannot be close to 100%. The others are postponed to better times. Marco Pellegrino at Christmas: the Argentine center back has a fractured heel and next week he will make new evaluations, also on an operation that is now unlikely. Pierre Kalulu, on the other hand, has arranged to meet everyone in March, at least. Yesterday he was operated on by Professor Lasse Lempainen in Finland for a complete rupture of the left rectus femoris tendon. Four months of absence are certain and the outlook today seems decidedly optimistic. Milan therefore, inevitably, looks forward, looks to the market.
forward with Kiwior
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The idea is to sign a central defender in January, this is the number 1 need at the moment and a couple of ways are more likely than the others. A loan from an important team, perhaps with the right to buy, and the purchase of a player whose contract expires in June. It is the summer strategy: choose players with less than a year left on their contract, with the logically more favorable conditions granted by a club that fears losing him for nothing. There are no advanced negotiations – January is far away – but one name must be followed carefully. He is a well-known name: Jakub Kiwior, a Pole seen at Spezia for a year and a half, from summer 2021 to January 2023. Kiwior is now at Arsenal and has an identikit known to the big clubs: born in 2000, left-footed, already followed by Milan in the past, starter at the World Cup in Qatar for Poland. Where does he play? In all positions that allow you to look at the world from the left. Left centre-back, left defender in a three-man line, left-back if needed. Plus – bonus – Spezia also used him as an adapted midfielder.
Because it can come
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Milan have hope of reaching Kiwior because at Arsenal they are behind two top-level centre-backs: Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes. No overtaking. Kiwior has started 7 games in the Premier League since January – 2 this season – and has started once in the Champions League. For the rest, sitting. Those who know him say that Jakub always wanted to test himself in the Premier League but in short, he left a piece of his heart in Italy and he certainly wouldn’t be sad about the opportunity to return. At this point, two logical consequences. The first: you need to wait. The January transfer window begins to be defined in December, not before. The second: Arsenal has great weight in this story. It will be up to the Gunners, in the coming weeks, to decide whether a loan, perhaps with a buyout, will be convenient. Kiwior cost 25 million in January, a record figure for the Spezia transfer market, who made a huge capital gain on that occasion: he was paid just 2.2 million.
Kelly and Juventus
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Kiwior is naturally not the only idea for Milan in the winter. Scouting, for that need of central defenders, looks at different situations. Geoffrey Moncada, number 1 reference for the AC Milan transfer market, went to see Bournemouth-Burnley. Main target, Lloyd Kelly, English, born in 1998, owner of Bournemouth. Juventus was probably the first Italian to follow him and no, they didn’t stop. Milan went to see him, there is English competition but here the issue seems more complex: Kelly is a starter, Bournemouth doesn’t want to sell him in January despite his contract expiring in June (renewal? very difficult). He’ll talk about it again. Not to be missed either is Konstantinos Koulierakis, the 19-year-old central defender of Paok, the Greek national team.
Miranda
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Connect the dots to understand the trend: Milan is looking for young players. Inexperienced? It doesn’t matter, the idea is that the future is built by choosing well, taking risks and putting important players’ projects in Pioli’s hands. This is why on the left we must always keep in mind Juan Miranda, Betis’ full-back from 2000, already on the Rossoneri’s approval lists. Milan moved in time, understood the conditions, now reflect. Miranda has an expiry date like Kelly, he can be hired for a few million – let’s say 3 – but for the contract he has important requests, of at least 2 million per season.
And Bartesaghi?
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This is also why Milan is taking their time, knowing that Davide Bartesaghi, currently the deputy Theo, is liked by Pioli and the whole club. He doesn’t have the offensive talent of a push back, he has never been considered predestined but he has the right head, he trains well, when he made his debut they liked it. Theo Hernandez is the classic player who is better if he plays and doesn’t need much rest, so the search for an assistant doesn’t distress the managers. They will talk about it between December and January, hoping that the injuries do not increase. The appeal cannot be shorter than this.
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