#ac-milan

#ac-milan

It is four days until AC Milan are back in action in Serie A, as they will welcome Hellas Verona to San Siro in Sunday's early kick-off. Milan will be looking to bounce back after a couple of negative results. They drew 2-2 against Sassuolo in their last league game, before flying to Saudi Arabia to be knocked out of the Supercoppa Italiana at the semi-final stage by Napoli, who went on to win it.

Every transfer window the idea of a potential swap deal between AC Milan and a rival comes up, and there is no exception this time. Reports have emerged in the past couple of days suggesting that Massimiliano Allegri is keen on a reunion with Federico Gatti, a defender that he promoted to the first team when he was in his second stint as Juventus head coach.

The likes of Matteo Geroli, Astin Mbaye, Fabio Pandolfi, Simon La Mantia, Victor Eletu and Lorenzo Ossola all signed their first professional contracts in recent months, and there were three more announcements more recently. Vincent Ibrahimovic and Andrea Cullotta penned senior contracts last week, while Luca Nolli was the most recent to do so. Now, there is another name to add to the list.

Niklas Sule is one of several names suggested for AC Milan this winter, and it seems that Fabrizio Romano is not sure about the situation. There is no hiding from the fact that Milan need a defender next month. However, they must find one under the right conditions. It is unlikely to be a permanent addition, unless they are cheap, and it cannot be anyone. Ultimately, they must be the right fit.

This January, Ruben Loftus-Cheek could leave AC Milan, and a move to Besiktas could be possible, with the Turkish outfit interested. It is not a certainty, but Loftus-Cheek could depart this winter, with Massimiliano Allegri struggling to offer him a regular place within the squad. He is useful, certainly, but not essential, and that makes him expendable. Abraham important to potential Besiktas move Interest is present from the Premier League, Serie A and even the Bundesliga.

In the January mercato, AC Milan need to sign a central defender, and there are a few options. However, they have already been given a rebuttal.

The future of Robert Lewandowski at Barcelona has become a major topic of discussion. The veteran striker's contract expires in June, and everything suggests that he will likely leave unless his performances are spectacular between now and the end of the season. The Polish forward's priority is to remain at Barça for one more year, and he is willing to accept a reduced salary and secondary role as well.

With Jashari playing as the deep-sitting midfield, he operated between the central centre-back and the left centre-back, allowing Tomori to push up as a quasi right-back to try and target Spinazzola. Napoli used a central overload with McTominay sitting back to create a 3+2 build-up structure. This drew Milan's front two and the midfield three, allowing space between Milan's front two lines and the last line of defence.