(06-22-2021, 09:03 AM)slifersd Wrote: [ -> ]I am going to make a bold prediction here regarding Hakan's replacement. Our number one goal is going to be a loan deal for some big team's unwanted star, like a Ziyech. If that doesn't work out, we are going to resign Pessina, bring back Pobega and have those two compete with Brahim and Tonali to see who would start in that position. I don't know about you guys, but if it is Pessina/Pobega/Brahim/Tonali, I am actually kind of excited about it. Those guys are unproven but have talent and can make a giant leap if given the time and opportunity.
I think playing Krunic as AMC is about the same as having Hakan, that is how Hakan has played for most of the season. I am really excited that Hakan is gone, we do not need 2 krunic in the squad. Now we have a chance to improve our AMC and RW.
(06-22-2021, 07:04 AM)slifersd Wrote: [ -> ]It is a mistake because management should have never allowed players to stay on the team when they have one year left on their contract and negotiations are not going anywhere. Yes, by the time you get to where we are at this point with Donna and Hakan, we are screwed. We either have to overpay for their services, and potentially risk not being able to get rid of them down the road, or we have to let them walk for free. It is really a lose lose situation for us. That is why management should have the foresight to make the right moves last offseason and get rid of those two. If I recall correctly, since we came off a really strong second half of the season, both guys' value were fairly high and we could've at least recover some money from their sales.
It was a short summer market in the middle of a pandemic. Finding buyers for the right price wasn't easy. Raiola brought a buyer, PSG, and their offer was less then 20M + Areola (according to reports). We also have to consider who we could afford to replace them at the time. We weren't even in the EL as we have to olay prelims to get there.
To be clear, I am not disagreeing. I just don't think the situation was as simple as that.
I am saying the same about Kessie, Romagnoli and Calabria now. If they don't sign in the next month, give them until beginning of August to find another team or they can rot on the bench. There is no point of negotiating if our offer is firm. If we are offering XYZ at most and we know we won't move from that number, what's the point? The only winners are the players who get to go and shop around. So at the very least, cut down their time to shop around. Simply, tell them July 31st is when they have to respond by or they are done here. Then they have 1 month to bring a buyer that'll pay what we're asking for or they'll lose a year from their career.
This last part is not the best for anyone. Because you could find yourself benching maybe one of the best at the club (Kessie) and your starting RB. Nobody's to say the replacements will be better or even as good. But that's the only way to do this.
Of course, there is another component to freezing them if they don't leave.....and that's, can we even afford to buy 3 good players to replace them. That means transfer fees + salaries (likely very competitive)...AND keep paying those 3. We are running at a 100M of losses. The decision isn't as simple as people make it sound.
(06-22-2021, 11:20 AM)nefremo Wrote: [ -> ]It was a short summer market in the middle of a pandemic. Finding buyers for the right price wasn't easy. Raiola brought a buyer, PSG, and their offer was less then 20M + Areola (according to reports). We also have to consider who we could afford to replace them at the time. We weren't even in the EL as we have to olay prelims to get there.
To be clear, I am not disagreeing. I just don't think the situation was as simple as that.
I am saying the same about Kessie, Romagnoli and Calabria now. If they don't sign in the next month, give them until beginning of August to find another team or they can rot on the bench. There is no point of negotiating if our offer is firm. If we are offering XYZ at most and we know we won't move from that number, what's the point? The only winners are the players who get to go and shop around. So at the very least, cut down their time to shop around. Simply, tell them July 31st is when they have to respond by or they are done here. Then they have 1 month to bring a buyer that'll pay what we're asking for or they'll lose a year from their career.
This last part is not the best for anyone. Because you could find yourself benching maybe one of the best at the club (Kessie) and your starting RB. Nobody's to say the replacements will be better or even as good. But that's the only way to do this.
Of course, there is another component to freezing them if they don't leave.....and that's, can we even afford to buy 3 good players to replace them. That means transfer fees + salaries (likely very competitive)...AND keep paying those 3. We are running at a 100M of losses. The decision isn't as simple as people make it sound.
It is not the only way to do it. We can also do what we did. I mean, Donnarumma was our best goalkeeper by far. Despite being a d***head and betraying us in the end he always gave his best and fought for the team during matches, just look at him during and after the last match vs Atalanta. If we had benched him the entire last season for Tatarusanu we would 100% sure not be finishing 2nd, but would still have to pay him the €6m... It would be madness. If it was just another squad player earning €250k then yes, but not when it's our best and highest paid players.
We should not have gotten into this situation in the first place, but after it was too late to fix it (meaning selling Donnarumma), we did the most out of it. And on the pitch, so did Donnarumma.
These are exactly the same type of reports that occurred during the Donnarumma and Calhanoglu contract sagas. Hopefully we can reach an agreement soon...
"There is confidence that AC Milan will eventually arrive at an agreement with Franck Kessie over the renewal of his contract, it is claimed."
"Although there is currently distance between the parties, the feeling is that an agreement will be reached soon."
"The Ivorian has no intention of leaving the Rossoneri because he is happy to be part of the squad and ‘feels important and like a leader’, something he has worked hard for over his four-year spell since arriving from Atalanta."
It's a bit upside-down this whole situation. Once we reached CL we're struggling to keep players. I thought it would be the other way around...
(06-22-2021, 11:20 AM)nefremo Wrote: [ -> ]This last part is not the best for anyone. Because you could find yourself benching maybe one of the best at the club (Kessie) and your starting RB. Nobody's to say the replacements will be better or even as good. But that's the only way to do this.
Of course, there is another component to freezing them if they don't leave.....and that's, can we even afford to buy 3 good players to replace them.That means transfer fees + salaries (likely very competitive)...AND keep paying those 3. We are running at a 100M of losses. The decision isn't as simple as people make it sound.
Valid points. However in this scenario we don't necessarily have to buy "3 good players" for replacement. For Romagnoli, we have Kjaer, Tomori and Gabbia. For Calabria, Kalulu, Dalot and may be even Salaemakers can play there if necessary. Kessie is for me who will be hard to replace without spending some big money.
Agreed such extreme decisions aren't easy but I rather make them than watch valuable players run down their contracts and walk for free, joining your local rival.
(06-22-2021, 12:20 PM)Arildonardo Wrote: [ -> ]It is not the only way to do it. We can also do what we did. I mean, Donnarumma was our best goalkeeper by far. Despite being a d***head and betraying us in the end he always gave his best and fought for the team during matches, just look at him during and after the last match vs Atalanta. If we had benched him the entire last season for Tatarusanu we would 100% sure not be finishing 2nd,but would still have to pay him the €6m... It would be madness...
Erm... I beg to disagree. I mean, was this assertion based on any statistical analysis? Like, how many points Donnarumma saved us vs how points he cost us through some of his howlers?
See, there's actually no way of knowing to make such categorical statements. Yes, he had been an important part of the team, contributed immensely, but can we say he's been more important than Kessie? Or Ibra? Or Kjaer? Bennacer? Like, if we removed one or two of these guys, the presence of Donnarumma alone is enough to guarantee 2nd position? I don't think so. It is not a clear cut thing. I don't believe there's a single player that was responsible for our achievement.
We lost 100 million euros in potential sales and we lost two first team players. Both of them were integral part of this team's success. You can spin it as you wish to make you feel better, but we just told everyone that money is scarce and it is our first priority at the moment. Titles are not. I am not saying we should have caved to their demands, but it is obvious that winning titles is still a distant priority. It could have easily lost both players to main competitors in Serie A.
(06-22-2021, 12:40 PM)Inas Wrote: [ -> ]Erm... I beg to disagree. I mean, was this assertion based on any statistical analysis? Like, how many points Donnarumma saved us vs how points he cost us through some of his howlers?
See, there's actually no way of knowing to make such categorical statements. Yes, he had been an important part of the team, contributed immensely, but can we say he's been more important than Kessie? Or Ibra? Or Kjaer? Bennacer? Like, if we removed one or two of these guys, the presence of Donnarumma alone is enough to guarantee 2nd position? I don't think so. It is not a clear cut thing. I don't believe there's a single player that was responsible for our achievement.
I would say Kessie, Bennacer, Kjaer, Ibra, Theo have definitely performed better than Donnarumma. In theory, I would give the 5 of them higher salary than Donnarumma. Giving Donnarumma 6m was a mistake.
Ideally, we shouldn't let anyone enter their last year of contract. Renewals (or sales) should be done at the 2 year mark. At 1 year, it's already a bit too late, but I get there's going to be special cases.
I think this will become easier with money and stability. When we are a mainstay in the CL, when we have a steady income flow....planning becomes simpler. Budgeting starts being a lot closer to the actuals.
I think this was precisely the issue last summer. We just didn't know what ground we stood on. We simply could not afford certain salaries without the CL income, yet we had no clue if we'd be in. There was probably some level of "calm" about negotiations due to thinking things will work out if we made the CL...but it was still an unknown. Then, we know how it ended.
At the end...like I said...i think with more (and steady flow of) money everything becomes easier. That, and the fact that Maldini (but also Elliot) is likely to learn a lesson here.
With that being said, it's not just Kessie, Calabria and Romagnoli. We also have to take care of those whose contracts expire 2 years from now. Tie them down now.
(06-22-2021, 01:33 PM)Kastriot Wrote: [ -> ]We lost 100 million euros in potential sales and we lost two first team players. Both of them were integral part of this team's success. You can spin it as you wish to make you feel better, but we just told everyone that money is scarce and it is our first priority at the moment. Titles are not. I am not saying we should have caved to their demands, but it is obvious that winning titles is still a distant priority. It could have easily lost both players to main competitors in Serie A.
100m euros in potential sales?
You can spin it however you want but 100m for Donnarumma and Hakan is a joke.