CM: From possible €30m sale to Allegri lynchpin – the background on Pavlovic’s rise

Strahinja Pavlovic was the match-winner for AC Milan against Roma, and to think there was a possibility that he could have left the club.

As Calciomercato.com report, Pavlovic is an ‘irreplaceable lynchpin’ in Massimiliano Allegri’s line-up at the moment having started every league game. He is also one of the strong believers that Milan can win the Scudetto this season, despite all of the doubts that others have.

What has changed since a year ago? And what happened during the most recent summer transfer window when he was one step away from leaving the club?

From sellable to irreplaceable

If we go back just five months, Pavlovic was actually close to leaving the Rossoneri as mentioned above. Milan were in the process of rebuilding, with Allegri and Igli Tare having taken the reins of the sporting project.

An offer from Crystal Palace arrived on the sporting director’s table – a €30m bid as reported by the English press – which made the management pause to reflect. This was before Newcastle’s offer for Malick Thiaw came in, too.

After the Serbian turned down Palace, Allegri immediately got to work on refining the obvious skills that Pavlovic has. He has made the outside centre-backs detachable arms of the three-man defence, something that the former Salzburg man has greatly benefitted from along with Fikayo Tomori.

MILAN, ITALY – NOVEMBER 02: Strahinja Pavlovic of AC Milan celebrates scoring his team’s first goal during the Serie A match between AC Milan and AS Roma at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on November 02, 2025 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

The direct consequence of this tactical ‘freedom’ (within reason, of course) is reflected in Pavlovic’s impact in the final third. His role has almost become similar to that of Alessandro Bastoni at Inter, joining attacks to offer support.

Not only that, but his speed and size cause a lot of disruption. Against Napoli in the 2-1 win at San Siro, his dart to the left byline opened up space for Christian Pulisic’s second goal. Against Roma, he covered 80 metres in 13 seconds to get on the end of Rafael Leao’s cut-back.

As the defender himself admitted, the Italian league requires a period of adaptation: “Serie A is very tactical, and my first year wasn’t easy. I had to learn when to run, when to wait, how to play one-on-one. Then I always try to work. Coach Allegri has improved me as a player, and he’s improved us as a team.”

His number suggest that he has finally settled in: over 64% of tackles won, over 61% of duels won, and and 63% in the air. These figures are in addition to his attacking output, which includes six crosses and six key passes, as well as two assists, five shots, and, of course, two goals.