AC Milan present Montella with plenty of quality signings / Image via static.pulse.ng
It’s only been four days since the 2017 summer transfer market has been officially opened but AC Milan have already finished a great load of work.
Vincenzo Montella’s squad is going through a major overhaul, arguably the biggest one we’ve seen in a while, and the Rossoneri fans are slowly beginning to dream big. With all of the club’s recent disappointments, however, can they dare ponder of a Serie A title challenge next season?
A New Milan
The Rossoneri are gliding into the new season with a new-look board which has officially installed mid-April once the €770 million purchase of AC Milan’s 99.9% stake by the Sports Investment Lux, a Chinese company led by Yonghong Li.
With Silvio Berlusconi officially ending his 31-year reign of the Italian heavyweights, a new dawn arrived for once the famed club that has been left rotting on the margins for far too long over the past seven years.
The club’s gradual decline both in the financial and sport sector will have hopefully been put to an end as anticipating supporters keenly await the beginning of the new season. Ac Milan are heading into the new season with a new board and a new set of players, some of which are bringing plenty of optimism into the Red and Black part of the city.
Promising Summer Start
AC Milan made a strong start in the transfer market, even before the window got officially opened on 1 July.
Rossoneri have previously already agreed on several high-profile moves that are expected to seriously raise the profile of Montella’s squad.
Atalanta starlet Franck Kessie moved to AC Milan on a year-long loan with Rossoneri forking out a €8 million fee to grab the talented defensive midfielder in front of AS Roma, who were also strongly linked with the 20-year-old Ivorian.
Vincenzo Montella placed plenty of focus on bolstering the back-line of his team by bringing in two high-quality players in the likes of Ricardo Rodriguez and Mateo Musacchio. Swiss international Rodriguez has arrived on the back of an €18 million move from Wolfsburg, whereas the same amount was paid to Villarreal for the signature of the Argentinean centre-back Musacchio.
Moving on to the midfield line, AC Milan have received an important boost with Bayer Leverkusen star attacking midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu, the Turkish free-kick specialist who is expected to bring in creativity and innovativeness into AC Milan’s style of play.
The biggest star of the summer transfer window thus far for AC Milan is Andre Silva, a €38 million buy from FC Porto.
The Portuguese international is a versatile centre-forward who brings explosiveness to the Rossoneri frontline and provides Montella with an important option upfront.
AC Milan are far from finished doing business this summer. Rossoneri have agreed contract terms with Atalanta right-back Andrea Conti and are waiting for their Serie A rivals to find the replacement and sanction the €24 million move as early as at the beginning of next week.
Having already broken the €100 million mark, AC Milan will take their transfer cost to €128 with Conti and will want their substantial investment to yield results next term.
Will AC Milan be Able to Challenge Juventus?
The biggest question remains despite heavy investments. Vincenzo Montella has done a wonderful work with a young and experienced squad last season to finish sixth and move one place up compared to the 2015-2016 season finish.
AC Milan have emerged as one of the most exciting squads in Serie A, but the 18-time Italian champions and three-time Champions League winners have spent too much time lingering around and will want a swift return to glory with all the top-rated players Montella now has at his disposal.
And with in-demand goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma pledging his future to Rossoneri in the latest piece of positive news for the club, it’s now up to Montella to mount a challenge and promote his side as one of the biggest title contenders alongside reigning champions Juventus.
Bianconeri have been silent this summer with Dani Alves leaving the club and only Rodrigo Bentancour arriving from Boca Juniors in a €10.5 million deal, but the lack of transfer activity should by no means deceive anyone into thinking that Bianconeri do not boast the strongest and most competitive squad in Italy.
Allegri’s men are once again the biggest favourites to lift the domestic trophy at the end of the season, but AC Milan will hope to give some value to 10/1 betting odds slapped on them as potential Serie A winners.
With an improved squad and a quality-packed roster on his hands, Vincenzo Montella is given a chance to prove his tactical worth against Massimiliano Allegri and we look forward to what is likely going to be a highly exciting Serie A season to see if AC Milan can re-claim the coveted trophy for the first time since 2011.
- Soccer News Like
- Be the first of your friends!
