MN: Winger or Cuadrado-esque full-back – Allegri studying best role for Saelemaekers

Alexis Saelemaekers is back at AC Milan to stay, by his own declaration. Now, Massimiliano Allegri is studying how to best use his new wild card.

After two years spent on loan at Bologna and Roma, Saelemaekers has returned to Milan. This time, as the Belgian told Milan TV on the first day of the preseason training camp, it feels like a more permanent thing.

“Now I’m here to stay. I’m happy to be back, I missed it. Now we’re going to do something big this year. It was an experience for me going on loan to other clubs, and this one helped me grow too,” he said.

“I have this feeling of taking something back here and I hope to do it with the whole team. It’s always nice to see all the people here at Milanello again, it’s like a family. I’m happy about that too.”

Allegri begins work

As MilanNews write, Saelemaekers knows what it means to wear the red and black shirt, having been a big part of the Scudetto-winning side in 2021-22, and is well aware of the responsibilities that a Milan player has on and off the pitch.

Having a player like the Belgian can be important in the bid to rebuild after a disastrous campaign. Saelemaekers, who arrived in Milan in January 2020 from Anderlecht, has given the impression of having grown significantly as a player and as a person over the past few seasons.

Photos: Francesco Pecoraro + Claudio Villa/Getty Images

He didn’t stay at Bologna because he was Thiago Motta’s man and Vincenzo Italiano had other ideas. Roma intended to keep him, but failed to reach Milan’s asking price (over €20m), and he returned to base a better player.

Under Claudio Ranieri, Alexis played extensively and in various positions. He was used as a right winger in a four-man defence, and with a three-man defence he played both right and left-wing back, showing his versatility.

Now we need to see what kind of vision Allegri has. The immediate focus is on Stefano Pioli’s title-winning side: regardless of the formation, it was a spectacle to see eleven players move in unison, a cohesive team that always had that extra push to help their teammates.

MilanNews add that it feels like Saelemaekers will play as a winger on both sides in a 4-3-3, therefore as a deputy to Leao and Pulisic. However, it cannot be totally excluded that he is used as a Cuadrado-esque right-back.Only time and his work at Milanello will tell.