AC Milan, a Serie A powerhouse, has not had a satisfactory season so far, currently ranking only 8th in the league. Although they changed their head coach before the winter transfer window, with Portuguese manager Conceicao taking over, after some observation, it became clear that some players in the Milan squad did not meet his requirements. As a result, Milan has been very active in this year's winter transfer window, having already secured Manchester City defender Walker and now seeking another forward.
According to "La Gazzetta dello Sport," Milan plans to sell two defenders, Emerson and Pavlovic, to raise funds for Feyenoord's striker Santiago Simón. Feyenoord is asking for a fee of 40 million euros for the efficient goalscorer.
Mexican forward Simón was born on April 18, 2001, starting his career at Cruz Azul in Mexico before transferring to Feyenoord in the summer of 2022 for 6 million euros. Standing at 1.83 meters tall and weighing 73 kilograms, Simón may not be particularly fast, but he is physically strong, good at positioning, possesses decent technique and goal-scoring awareness, and finishes decisively. Primarily a center-forward, Simón can also play as a second striker.
Since joining Feyenoord, Simón quickly became the team's main center-forward, scoring 62 goals and providing 14 assists in 103 appearances. This season, despite an injury, he returned in November and his form remained unaffected. In 17 matches across various competitions, he scored 13 goals and provided 3 assists, contributing to 16 goals in total, remaining the team's most reliable source of firepower.
Simón's contract expires in June 2027, and his market value on Transfermarkt is 37 million euros. His consistent goal-scoring record over several seasons has attracted the attention of many top clubs. Milan made an offer for Simón last summer just before the transfer window closed, but due to time constraints, the transfer was not completed.
Feyenoord knows it will be difficult to keep Simón and, although reluctant to let him go in the winter window, has set a price tag of 40 million euros for Milan.
With limited funds, Milan needs to sell players to raise the 40 million euros for the transfer fee. "La Gazzetta dello Sport" believes that two new signings from the summer of 2024, Emerson and Pavlovic, are the most likely to leave.
The 26-year-old right-back Emerson joined from Tottenham for 15 million euros and became Milan's starting right-back in the first half of the season, making 25 appearances with 21 starts. However, with the arrival of Walker and other options like Calabria, Emerson is not indispensable.
Multiple media outlets have reported that Milan is negotiating with Galatasaray of the Turkish Super League. Emerson's current market value is 14 million euros, and it is expected that around 15 million euros could be recouped. Fulham of the Premier League is also interested in signing Emerson.
The 23-year-old central defender Pavlovic joined from Red Bull Salzburg for 18 million euros. Not being a regular starter for Milan, he made only 10 starts in 14 appearances in the first half of the season. With Conceicao stopping Tomori's transfer, Pavlovic was also allowed to leave. Fenerbahce of the Turkish Super League has reportedly offered 18 million euros for Pavlovic, but Milan rejected the offer. It is expected that Milan would consider offers around 25 million euros.
In this way, Milan could recover about 40 million euros from the sale of these two defenders.
Additionally, Kik and Chukwueze are also on Milan's list of players to be sold, and they will leave if the price is right. Jovic, who is no longer playing for Milan, has attracted interest from multiple teams and will leave if a substantial offer is made.
Besides Simón, Milan is also targeting Sevilla's Luka Jovic, who has a similarly high asking price of 40 million euros. They are also keeping an eye on Barcelona's substitute Ferran Torres and Chelsea's rotational player Felix, aiming to secure a half-season loan for one of them.
From Milan's series of moves since the winter window opened, it is evident that the club's owner, RedBird Capital, is not satisfied with the current squad and intends to carry out extensive renewal and replacement. However, due to financial constraints, they can only adopt a method of robbing Peter to pay Paul.
With only 11 days left in the winter window, will Milan be able to complete the ins and outs of these players?