AC Milan CEO Marco Fassone Remains Tight-Lipped Over Next Target After Morata Comments Backfire
AC Milan CEO Marco Fassone has announced his desire not to discuss potential transfer deals in detail for the remainder of the transfer window, after his choice to publicly express the club's desire to sign Àlvaro Morata arguably played a part in the player's eventual move to Chelsea. I Rossoneri have been prolific in the transfer window so far, spending over €160m thus far.
Speaking to Calciomercato, via Football Italia, Fassone discussed a number of topics following the club's pre-season showing in the International Champions Cup in China. Addressing the upcoming season and their Europa League qualification match against Romanian minnows FC Universitatea Craiova, Fassone stated:
"We have 10 important days, with two important matches. Now the real season starts. We'll see if we're ready, we've prepared in the best way".
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AC's trip to China was a mixed bag in terms of on-the-field success. Vincenzo Montella's men suffered a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday, a game in which transfer target Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang bagged an impressive brace. However, the team rallied and produced a stunning 4-0 thrashing of Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich on Saturday.
The San Siro sleeping giants joined Chelsea in an intense battle for the signatures of Álvaro Morata, Andrea Belotti and Aubameyang, but the club's decision to publicly announce their desire to sign the players was thought to have put a sour taste in the mouths of their respective sides. Perhaps learning his lesson, Fassone refused to be drawn on new target Nikola Kalinić:
"Kalinić? I won’t mention the names of players from other teams anymore. We’ll do something but with the necessary calmness.”
AC Milan, with the backing of their new Chinese billionaire owners, have been splashing the cash with gusto so far in the summer transfer window. Among the nine high profile signings they've made are Italian defensive legend Leonardo Bonucci, prodigious Portuguese forward André Silva and set-piece sensation Hakan Çalhanoğlu.
The club are set to miss out on Aubameyang, as the player is believed to be set on a big move to China, while Torino have reservations about selling Belotti to AC after the club discussed the player so publicly. The Bonucci coup has shown that AC are capable of pulling off surprise deal, and it would be no surprise to see the Serie A giants pull off another before the window closes.
