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After making a decision to leave Victor Boniface, AC Milan will now turn to other options in the mercato.
There are several names that have been suggested this summer, and Milan have failed to really make much movement for any of them. Thus far, Boniface is the closest that the Rossoneri have come to recruiting a new number nine, but it was not to be.
Instead, the club have opted to leave it, with Bayer Leverkusen’s sporting director effectively ruling out any negotiations. So, another direction will have to be found. This is why Massimiliano Allegri and Igli Tare met at Casa Milan.
The situation
Conrad Harder was one of the big focuses of said meeting, and his agent was actually present at Casa Milan this afternoon. However, Dusan Vlahovic is also a rising name of interest, which is understandable.
Matteo Moretto spoke on Fabrizio Romano’s YouTube channel this afternoon to discuss the situation, and MilanNews have relayed his words.
“All eyes are on Victor Boniface. At this moment, negotiations between Leverkusen and Milan have collapsed. Milan have decided not to proceed with the signing of Victor Boniface, so much so that today the Nigerian striker returned to Germany.
“On Saturday, after carefully analysing the results of the medical tests, Milan decided to stop the negotiations. They did not have the necessary guarantees for the continuity of Boniface’s performance, on Boniface’s knees.
“In the long run, this deal is considered risky for Milan. Milan had doubts about the reliability and integrity of the player’s knees and decided to stop. His physical condition was not convincing. Milan has decided to give the player the green light to return to Germany, and, in parallel, Milan is keeping other options alive.
“Plan A at this moment, the player with whom Milan has had the most contact and for whom they are negotiating both with Sporting and with the player’s entourage is Harder, a Danish striker with a class of 2005.
“It’s a name that AC Milan is negotiating; there have also been direct contacts between Zlatan Ibrahimovic and the player. AC Milan is negotiating directly with all parties involved to advance the deal.
“In recent days, Harder has been approached by other clubs, including Rennes and other English clubs, but the striker hasn’t signed. He’s decided to put all negotiations on hold while waiting for AC Milan, and is now in talks with the Rossoneri about a possible transfer in these final days of the transfer window.
“Harder might not be the only reinforcement up front. Milan are working on several options. Always keep an eye on Massimiliano Allegri’s interest.
“There is a significant gap in terms of salary for Vlahovic; he is a complicated name due to cost issues: not so much for the transfer fee, given that Milan could find a solution with Juventus. Perhaps even by inserting a counterpart.
“There are solutions; there is a dialogue between the clubs. The real obstacle is Vlahovic’s salary. Vlahovic earns more than 10 million euros a season, and Milan will have to understand if the player is willing to make a sacrifice to wear the Rossoneri shirt.
“I always keep these names on Milan’s list. Let’s start with Rasmus Hojlund. It’s true that Napoli are very close to the Dane, Napoli are in advanced negotiations, well underway for Hojlund: a loan transfer with an option to buy that could become a mandatory one.
“Keep an eye on Milan if they decide to change strategy by going for Hojlund, changing the conditions with United and going all-in on the player. We’ll see, there are evaluations underway: the news is that Napoli are ahead and want to try to close the deal in the next few hours.
“In addition to Hojlund, Vlahovic, and Harder, there’s Embolo and Arokodare, two names that are always good in these final days of the transfer window.”
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