Hakan Calhanoglu is reportedly set to leave AC Milan this summer, and for the Rossoneri it’s an opportunity to improve the team.
As reported by MilanNews’ Antonio Vitiello, the Turkish international is set to join Inter in a surprise move, with his current Milan contract set to expire in just over a week.
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Given the contractual situation has dragged out this long and with such little time remaining to agree new terms before the 27-year-old becomes a free agent, the expectation was that he would leave, but to join our city rivals will no doubt leave a bitter taste for many supporters.
Calhanoglu departs having helped guide us back to the Champions League and so there will be positive memories of his time at the club, but ultimately moving on from him and looking to add an upgrade in such a pivotal role this summer is the right result for Milan.
Milan maintain strong contract stance, replacing Calhanoglu key
It’s important to stress that Milan put an offer on the table for Calhanoglu, and essentially he has opted for a better deal elsewhere. The Rossoneri have now lost two key players this summer for nothing after Gianluigi Donnarumma’s exit, and so there is an element of frustration that we didn’t at least cash in.
Nevertheless, the stance and the way in which the club has dealt with the situations by ultimately putting the club first and offering a fair deal that is right for Milan is the best way to go and we move on with players who will replace them.
Milan did brilliantly to move so quickly for Mike Maignan to fill the void left behind by Donnarumma, and it’s fair to say that they would have planned for the possible departure of Calhanoglu in the same fashion and have replacements in mind.
Bringing in the right player though is now of paramount importance.
Calhanoglu arrived as one of our marquee signings in the hectic 2017 summer transfer window, and while he added quality to the team, tallies of 32 goals and 48 assists in 172 appearances for the club suggest that it wasn’t always positive given he had such a pivotal role in our side for four seasons.
Milan’s No.10 enjoyed fine runs of form at times and was influential both in terms of his work ethic in the final third and his quality in possession.
However, too often he would go quiet and cold for long stretches, offering little in the way of attacking threat and ultimately leaving Milan fans hugely frustrated and disappointed that he wasn’t producing more quality, more consistently.
If Milan want to compete at the top level and stay there, bringing in an upgrade on Calhanoglu is arguably needed. That isn’t to say he’s a bad player. He’s evidently talented and can play an important role for any team, but he didn’t step up and take his game to the next level this past season and that was a bad sign moving forward if he did stay.
It will be strange seeing him don the Nerrazzuri jersey next season, but Milan move on and it’s hoped that the club’s management will get it right when it comes to finding his replacement.
