AC Milan are reportedly set to miss out on Lille defender Sven Botman as he edges closer to sealing a move to Newcastle Utd.
The Rossoneri have been heavily linked with the Dutch international for months, and so the 22-year-old certainly appeared to be a top target as part of our strategy for the summer transfer window.
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However, it appears as though a move to Milan won’t materialise, as MilanNews report that Botman has reached an agreement in principle with Newcastle on personal terms, and with the Premier League side having already secured a deal with Lille, it appears as though a switch to England will now go through.
It’s added that Milan will now consider alternative options to bolster our defence, but the ongoing delay with regards to the futures of Paolo Maldini and Frederic Massara are said to have been the key issue in what held up a potential deal with Milan.
Botman blow disappointing, fear for Milan’s transfer plans
Naturally, it’s a bitterly disappointing development knowing that the club management were very keen on signing Botman this summer, and the hope now is that this doesn’t impact any of our other plans in the transfer market as we simply can’t afford to keep missing out on top targets.
On one hand it could be argued that we didn’t necessarily need Botman given the excellent partnership that Fikayo Tomori and Pierre Kalulu formed last season, while Simon Kjaer will return from injury and provide solid cover.
However, with Matteo Gabbia still not quite at the level required and Alessio Romagnoli set to become a free agent, defensive reinforcements are needed, but there is also a replacement for Franck Kessie on the agenda as well as adding more creativity and quality in the final third given that was a major weakness for us at times last season.
Milan must now wrap up renewals for Maldini and Massara as soon as possible and put them in a strong position to get deals done from next week. Otherwise we risk seeing all of our top targets move elsewhere and ultimately that will force us to consider and settle for alternative options and Plan Bs at a time when we should be attracting top talent off the back of Champions League qualification and a Serie A title-winning campaign.