Milan Still Searching For a Right-Back After Missing Out | OneFootball

Milan couldn’t fulfill all their transfer market goals during the summer window and are already plotting to address a couple of holes in January. In particular, the Rossoneri would like to bring in a fullback more established than Zachary Athekame, Calciomercato reports.

They tested the waters for a few options down the stretch, but there wasn’t enough time. In particular, they probed Janlu Sanchez, who was close to Napoli but stayed at Sevilla, Girona’s Arnau Martinez, and Barcelona’s Hector Fort.

Milan didn’t find a deal they liked before deadline day and simply stood pat, even though they parted ways with Alex Jimenez, who joined Bournemouth on loan with a conditional obligation to buy. Alexis Saelemaekers, Athekame, Koni De Winter, and possibly also Fikayo Tomori will man the role in the coming months.

According to TuttoSport (via Mediaset), the Rossoneri are particularly intrigued by Martinez. There’s a €14M release clause in his contract. The Barcelona product has recorded 9 goals and 18 assists in 169 matches with Girona. Despite the outside interest, his team managed to retain him after selling Miguel Gutierrez to Napoli.

Our Take on Milan Looking For a Right-Back

They’ll be fine as long as they use a 3-5-2, but their final moves and the makeup of their squad are conducive to a fairly quick tactical switch, at least in the management’s mind. Fielding Alexis Saelemaekers and Pervis Estupinan as the fullbacks in a four-man line is ambitious and probably too aggressive for Massimiliano Allegri’s liking. But, without the cups, they should be able to patch up the position, with De Winter as a strong candidate to see the lion’s share of minutes, until the next window.