Should Milan Buy Kalinic?

Kalinic could be headed to Milan? Is he a good fit for the Rossoneri? Image: Getty

Kalinic has been linked with Milan for some time now, and it seems like progress is being made. His purchase isn’t agreed upon by the Milan community, and it may be the first decision that Fassone and Mirabelli have made that hasn’t been wholeheartedly supported by the Rossoneri fans. Let’s examine the striker and see if he is the right fit for Milan.

Too Similar To Bacca?

One of the criticisms made against the Croatian is that he’s too similar to Bacca. While Kalinic may have scored significantly more goals than Bacca, they both play quite similarly, and as we saw with the Colombian this year, that playing style may fail to perform in Montella’s system. Kalinic is not Bacca though.

He’s a completely different player, and he’s shown that in the league. While Bacca suffered from scoring woes, Kalinic racked up 15 goals in the Serie A this season and 5 in the Europa League en route to another productive season. He also possesses something that Bacca does not — vision. Kalinic can hold the ball up well, and he often links with his teammates to create great goalscoring chances.

Say what you want about Kalinic. He may play similar to Bacca, but that doesn’t mean he’s the same player, and it doesn’t mean that he’ll suffer the same fate as Bacca did this year.

Goals Galore

Kalinic is a goal scoring machine. At least, that’s what he’s shown us this season. The striker racked up 20 goals across all competitions with Fiorentina this season along with 4 assists. The Croatian can do it all — link up play, aerial ability, clinical finishing. Milan lacks a striker who can finish consistently, and Kalinic can do just that. He’s proven that he can score, and while he may not be the best striker in the world, he is certainly a pretty productive one.

If you’re looking for goals, Kalinic is your man. he could be the answer that Milan has been looking for, and if he were to come off the bench as is likely, he would provide a great boost for the Milan attack.

Old Man + Price Tag

These two criticisms of the forward are the ones that I believe are the most valid. He isn’t the youngest player in the world by any means, and while Milan fans want a Belotti-type signing, they have to remember that experience is vital. The Rossoneri already have an extremely young roster, and some experience added to the mix certainly wouldn’t hurt them. At 29 years of age, Kalinic isn’t even that old. Sure, he won’t spearhead the Milan attack for the next 10 years, but they have Andre Silva for that.

The price tag on the other hand is more concerning. It seems as though Fiorentina want around €25 million for the striker, a pretty hefty price considering that he would probably be nothing more than a bench player should Montella opt to stick with the one striker formation. There’s plenty of better options out there who could probably be acquired for around the same price, but we can’t simply expect Milan to dole out the cash for a Belotti or an Aubameyang. The new Chinese ownership does have money, but their pockets are only so deep, and FIFA Fair Play regulations have to be met.

Kalinic isn’t the greatest player in the world, especially for that price tag, but he’s not as bad as everyone is shaping him up to be. He would be a solid striker off the bench to accompany youngster Andre Silva, and if Fassone and Mirabelli are able to work their magic and lower his price tag by a couple million euros, he would be worth the pickup in my eyes.

Montella has coached him previously, so it seems as though this is a personal request from the gaffer himself. If Montella wants him, then let him have Kalinic. Who knows what could happen?