Milanista

I'm not sure why you all are excited over a Dutch defender, when you can get a good English lad?

Well, many of his league titles were awarded by the courts. He also seldom played when Inter was winning things. It's not slander. He's not even in the top 20 of Italian CBs. I'm just asking you to refine your taste. Also, Cannavaro isn't as highly regarded in Italy as he is outside of Italy. I'm a fan of his, actually, but he's widely seen as overrated in comparison to others.

He's won... a final, playing 2 minutes. Maldini went to 8, won 5. Maldini is considered the greatest defender of all time, if not him, than another Milan legend, Baresi, Beckenbauer if you feel like being charitable to the Jerries. Materazzi was carried to that world cup final on the back of a guy named Nesta, and Gattuso, another guy named Oddo, and Pirlo, and Inzaghi, not sure if you've heard of them, they all played for a club, the name escapes me though, where all those guys also won twice the CLs that Materazzi went to and went to triple the finals... If only I could remember the name... It'll come to me. Enjoy Botman.

Inter doesn't really compare with Milan when it comes to finals. Not sure you want to have the "who's won what" game with me, lol. (Materazzi didn't start and was an injury time sub, btw, I keep forgetting the lone CL final Inter has experienced in the last oh... 60 years)

Oh, so an overrated CB who never won anything of note at club level? Aim higher.

Are you guys confident on getting Paqueta?

Is there a general thread that you guys tend to congregate in?

Whoa whoa whoa. Lol. You better pray he becomes your Kompany, otherwise, I will remember this moment. Milan fans have a reputation for revenge, lol.

Yeah, you guys are great.

I'm not a Botman fan, he reminds me of our outgoing captain who we let go for free (Romagnoli), who we benched for Kalulu. If Kjaer returns to his former self after his ACL surgery, then we need to find a fourth-choice CB, rather than a first choice CB. Botman is rated by Stam, that should tell you what kind of quality he is. He really is like VVD, but you're going to have to develop him, as CB is a position that requires a lot of experience. Maldini is set to extend, and for Milan fans, that is our biggest priority, as him leaving would have felt like doom after the work he's done.

Milan fans are certain that you have won the race for Botman.

This reporter for L'Equipe, who I'm not sure how reliable he is, but he is saying that Botman and Renato will not be sold until July for accounting reasons.

Just as a heads up, the way this meeting is being spun in Italy is that Milan are interested in Gabriel Jesus, while lurking in the background in dealing with Roma is their player Zaniolo. Milan's fanbase are torn on this, as Zaniolo would be a very expensive player for our RW. Before he tore both of his ACLs, yes, he was an incredible talent. His production in Serie A has been decidedly average. Our Brazilian RW, Messias, a former delivery driver who was plying his trade in the fourth division a few seasons ago (yes, you read that right) scores more goals than him. Suffice, to say, I am praying that we do not purchase him. Ibanez is a terrible defender, I doubt Maldini is interested in him, and would love for Gabriel Jesus to come to Milan to play as our RW. Zaniolo? If I wanted Milan to overpay for an Italian winger who was injured seriously, it would be Chiesa, as before his injury, he would have been our ideal RW. Chatter of alternatives has shifted to Thiaw from Schalke, and a theory that Milan is going to spend more in attack and less on Botman. However, I think with Vitiello's silence, it seems that Maldini is working without giving out information. So it is anyone's guess.

Lol, I'm sorry, my memory might be foggy, but when I was younger, I remember Shola doing some crazy things, and then I was like "am I thinking of the wrong player?" Then I stumbled upon this: It seems... my memory has failed me, lol.

Oh, when I say "finance driven" I mean that you seek value rather than hype. Building a cohesive and contended squad is huge, but looking at the players you have targeted, Newcastle doesn't seem to be run by fans. Fans like names, fans want Nkunku, even if he's only done it for one year, in the highly specific Leipzig system, where he has a nebulous position, but who cares? Nkunku!! Botman is not a sexy CB purchase. He isn't. His team did poorly this year, he's too expensive for a club like Leipzig or Dortmund, but he's not high-profile enough for clubs like Chelsea or Man Utd, who if they were smart, would swoop in for him, but they are horribly run clubs, for God's sake Chelsea has their owner as their interim sporting director? That's... That can't be good. So, my point was that your management team isn't pursuing players based on hype. Every team is going to make mistakes in transfers, things don't work out, whatever. But, my point was that I think only Liverpool use a similar approach to you in the EPL. We do, too, obviously, as we're both after Botman. Few teams are using scouting systems like we are, and that is finance driven, as are the negotiation tactics, which are still very primitive in European football. That was my point.

It is actually a frustrating habit (for many fans) that Maldini has in his negotiations. Milan has lost out on many targets because he doesn't deviate from the initial offer very much--the idea of Maldini heavily relying on data to make his selections, with a huge analytics team and insulated scouting to prevent bias in evaluations, is the centerpiece of his approach. We missed out on players that most fans have wanted, the only one I, personally, wish we had was Wesley Fofana. Before breaking his leg, he was an amazing CB. Maldini sells players on Milan, the club. He tells players that you can develop here, and that's why they come to Milan. Players he has recruited have not left the club, our loss of free players like Donnaruma, Kessie, and Hakan, those were players brought in from previous regimes, while Donnaruma is widely reported to have bluffed with Maldini to get a larger wage, which Maldini was annoyed with after Donnaruma and his agent (Raiola) continued to press for insane wages, when he was already one of the highest paid keepers in Europe. Maldini was ruthless with our homegrown talent. We desperately needed a RW in the summer, identified an underrated talent from Brest in France, there was some haggling, and then the player stopped going to training and made some inflammatory interviews. Maldini dropped his interest immediately. I'm not sure why you seem upset that Maldini is recruiting players who want to do more than just get paid the most, he's selling players are becoming legends. Also, it should be noted, that in Italy, the current tax laws allow you to pay 50% less tax than you would in other European countries. My own personal socio-economic views on the viability of this law to trigger economic growth in Italy (or anywhere) aside, it allows Italian teams to have a sizable economic advantage over other clubs, even EPL clubs. Wages in England are reported before taxes, while in Italy they are reported after taxes, it seems that many times what is seen as "undercutting" is really about having different financial figures. Maldini is a notoriously humble man, he is confident, yes, but he is widely seen as a gentleman of the game. I don't think he is arrogant, but I may be biased--though it should be said that his positive view is widely held in Italy, of that, I am sure. Perhaps in England he is perceived differently? Regardless, Maldini pursues players who want more than just money--he also rewards players who prove themselves, which is why he is extending our key players, doubling and tripling their salaries. Milan do not run on glamor like Real, nor do they operate with the fame of Man Utd, what Milan emphasizes its DNA, which is to push innovation (not always successfully, of course) in terms of tactics, to win with style, but most relevant to this discussion: that Milan is a family. Players who stayed short periods at Milan cried when they left, like notorious hard man Marco Van Bommel or Zambrotta, who made his reputation with Juventus rather than Milan, he also cried. Milan is a big club that has a fanbase with a passion usually only found in lower league teams--which is a characteristic I think Newcastle shares with Milan, to be honest. Milan is historically the club of the working class side of Milan (the city) who play beautifully and value skill, while Inter, the club of the elite, play ugly and defensively. Correct me if I am wrong, the north of England is known for its hardy people, but Newcastle is not associated (at least in my mind) with hard-nosed defenders, rather, I think of Ginola, Shearer, and a fanbase that loves a gangly attacker capable of a flash of brilliance like Shola, Lualua, Ben Arfa, and the eternal "if he only got it together" Robert, or Saint-Maximin now? I'm not saying those are your best players in your history, but, those are the ones that come to mind for me--I associate attack with Newcastle, which points to the unique mix that makes Newcastle, well, Newcastle. Maldini is selling players on being part of what makes Milan, Milan. He's telling them you can go to Real or Barca, but they churn through their players, don't remember them, but at Milan? You can rebuild Milan, with me, and become a legend for people. It's a hell of sales pitch. Frankly speaking, I think Newcastle should be selling what it means to represent Newcastle when they are dealing with players. I get the sense (from reading here) that there isn't the same point person to recruit players. I'd be happy to work for you, if anyone knows where I can send my CV, let me know, lol. I have great respect for Newcastle, your fans, and your club, so my advocacy for Milan I hope isn't seen as a contrast to Newcastle, because I'm not the biggest Botman fan, but I do enjoy talking to you all, quite frankly. I hope that after this summer, we continue to chat, before trading CL final wins back-and-forth. Cheers!

Maldini doesn't participate in auctions. He offers what he thinks is reasonable, maybe he'll come back with bonuses, otherwise, he doesn't participate in the whole "for a few million more" game. To be fair, I have laid out why I think he hasn't signed for Milan yet: Lille want more money. Milan won't offer more. Milan is building its squad to challenge for the CL, Newcastle, with respect, is still building its foundations. They are at different stages of fundamental, from the bottom-to-the-top re-builds. Milan's rebuild started 3 years ago, Newcastle's started 6 months ago. I am not trying to disparage Newcastle. Newcastle and Milan, unfortunately for Lille, seem to not only have similar transfer targets, but, they also have similar negotiation tactics, they're using Mergers and Acquisitions tactics, rather than sports fan logic, which is more prevalent in top sport than it should. For example: management teams in the USA turned down Giannis Antetokounmpo, a superstar NBA player, because they heard rumors that he was "soft" and that a stateless kid could not handle living "in a foreign country." Newcastle, like Milan, are run by people from the world of finance--at least I have to assume you are, because the tactics you've used all bear the hallmarks of finance negotiation. It has filtered out that Newcastle's bid was below the 40m reported, and it seems that both Newcastle and Milan's bids are similar--it seems Newcastle's is a bit higher. Lille want more money, again, they tried to rope in Man Utd and Spurs, who are both in need of a CB, but they both denied their interest. Lille then tried to rope in PSG, which didn't really seem to stick. We should all just sit back, relax, and realize that there's a good chance that Botman will not be that good, lol. I'm from the faction of Milan fans who are not crazy about him, it really is the fact that Maldini and Stam rate him that makes me shut my mouth and defer to them. I mean, when you have the superb Englishman Tomori, why would you want a Dutchman? Am I right? Lol. (Apologies to any Dutch fans here, just a joke, you know Milan's long love of Dutch players) I hope you all are well.

I think the journalists are really stabbing in the dark. On the Milan end, the President of Milan said this when asked about Milan losing out on targets: "You say we lose so many opportunities, I don’t know. We lose a lot of chatter, when I read the newspapers I don’t see dozens of completed transactions but dozens of hypotheses. We at Milan have a habit of being more reserved than others, and this is due to Maldini and Massara." He also seemed to affirm that Maldini and Massara will be renewing. It's funny how the hypotheses over why Milan hasn't made signings vary wildly, with rumors of a "50m transfer budget" and other rumors about our new owners having no money, which they say is why the deals haven't been done. If that was the case, why hasn't Newcastle snapped up Botman yet? Why haven't you all signed Paqueta yet? I think Lille is trying to get higher bids, and they're not getting them. Lille are spreading rumors of PSG interest in Renato Sanches, another Lille player that Milan want, and yet... PSG have Verratti and Wijnaldum on the roster, why would they get him? It's a very odd situation, and it seems that Lille are really trying to play hardball. The weird aspect is that Elliott, the current owners and soon-to-be minority owners of Milan, they hold a strong interest in Lille. The fact journalists haven't even thrown out this lazy idea out there is confusing to me, but it has to be a factor in negotiations, either positive (Lille giving Milan a deal) or negative (Elliott now have a stronger incentive to push up the price now that they are selling 70% of Milan)--so it seems that journalists are not even being creative. It also seems that Longo is losing his credibility that he built up. It doesn't help that he works for a poorly regarded paper, but he had the inside scoop on players last year and on extensions, but it seems this summer has eroded confidence in his reporting. Vitiello is still seen as the strongest, and he has yet to say anything recently. So there is a lot of confusion, and it seems that Milan is not a very leaky ship, with hints having to come from North Korea-like interpretations of random pieces of information. Our keeper, Maignan, has more-or-less hinted that Milan's next goal is to win the CL, after releasing a video. That's how little news is coming out from Milan, just to put things into perspective. That's my news report, lol, and now back to the studio!

So those rumors about Maldini not extending seem to be... a random flurry. Reports are that Maldini will be extending. Frankly, the Renato news is a reflection of Lille wanting more money for their targets. Lille did the same thing with Botman, trying to rope in Man Utd and Spurs (who denied interest), then turned to PSG to try and stir up interest. Why the Renato rumors hit Milan fans so hard, especially when they were paired with rumors that Maldini wasn't going to re-sign, I'm not sure why people believed them this time. Maldini extending would simply affirm that the new owner shares Maldini's ambition--and frankly speaking, if he wants to get a return on his 1.2 billion (for 70%) he really has no choice but to match those ambitions. Doesn't look like Milan is falling out of the race.

Milan fans are in complete meltdown, they are convinced Maldini will not renew, that our new owners are preventing us from completing the moves that were agreed 6 months ago, and that we are the verge of collapse. Enjoy the schadenfreude.

It's funny how similar our fanbases are reacting to the Botman transfer, although there is much more certainty among Milan fans that Botman wants to come to Milan. There is a panic starting among Milan fans as Maldini's contract ends June 30th, and he gave this big interview where he said that it was disrespectful that he wasn't in talks over a renewal (this was during Milan being sold, and the takeover negotiations) and how Milan were at a cross-roads, where either they push to be truly elite by bringing in 2-3 players or they stay as they are and hover as a domestic force and that's it. The new owner, the day he acquired Milan, talked about how Maldini is central to his plans, he had a meeting, picture with him and Maldini smiling was sent out, but no contract extension. So now Milan fans are getting nervous and some are truly anxious, because none of our transfer targets, even our free ones (Origi) have been made official yet. Maldini signing up for the new ownership would be an endorsement of the new owner's vision, which is a domineering Milan. I personally think Maldini is at work and chances are he's signed a new contract, but the fact that deals haven't been closed, and journalists (not the reputable ones) have thrown out wild theories, it is causing tremendous doubt among fans. Many Milan fans are of the opinion that we don't have as much money as we thought we did, and that the reason the deals aren't closing is because we are destitute. This narrative goes against all facts and financial realities of our hedge fund owners, but it seems like the scars of Ashley have impacted Newcastle fans, the scars of our previous years of folly have left traumatized people unable to grasp that things are getting better lol. So we are very similar. I'm not sure what the issue is, but it's funny how Newcastle, who most certainly have money, aren't closing deals yourselves, to me, it just shows that there are lots of things going on, and I bet that 99/100 the things that are reported are not the issues. It's probably far more mundane and less sexy issues like negotiating strategy, taxes, accountants, lawyers, and other mundane office stuff that holds things up--anyway, just thought I'd update you on Milan's side of the Botman saga. I mean, outside of Darwin and Haaland, it's still early, and too early to freak out over deals. I guess I'm just reassured that you guys are as antsy as we are. Hope you all are well!

Keegan might be the bigger name among the older generations because of his time with Hamburg, but Shearer is widely respected. Italians love players who play for their favorite/hometown club, I mean, who doesn't? The points about Shearer not being up for the job and his media career makes sense, it's a shame, because I think you need someone with name recognition to sell the club to new players. You guys are 6 months in, it's going to take time to build up the reputation, but having big names helps. If it's not Shearer, having someone who can be part of that process, even if they aren't a Newcastle legend would be huge.

You guys have all been so nice to me, and have flattered my club, to which I thank you all for being so hospitable. I don't think the size of the club is what makes Milan appealing right now though, it's that we have a proven track record of promoting young players, developing them, and trusting them if they stumble. Maldini makes direct pitches to players. He was the one who personally recruited Theo Hernandez to come to Milan, telling him that he believed Theo could become the best LB in the world. This is what Maldini said to Kalulu, our CB wonderboy, who had yet to make a single professional appearance: "For the first six months I want you to watch and learn. You’re in the country where defending is king. Memorise all you can. Sooner or later, your chance will come." Maldini is obviously going to have some pull with defenders, as these kids, who probably never watched Maldini play, all admire him. Milan fans are widely of the belief that Maldini is like Billy Beane (from the movie Moneyball) and is a shadow coach for our defenders. Now, that doesn't seem to actually be the case, and Pioli (our manager) seems to be the real deal, but that's the perception of Maldini and that has to play into Botman's choice. I think Newcastle is still in the early stages of your build, but I think you guys need need need to have Shearer as part of your executive team. The fact that Roma didn't keep Totti around is absolute insanity to me. There is a huge value to having players be part of your recruitment. There are players who are going to go for money, and they should, they are playing a game where their careers can end in an instant. But, I also think with the massive competition for players, you need to be selling more than "hey, we're a big club, we will pay you good money, come here." The sorts of personalities that you're going for are strong ones. Paqueta did not shy away from go against our former manager when he insulted Brazil. Paqueta has backbone. You want players who think more than one step ahead, and there's no doubt that Maldini is crucial to our recruitment. He sold Tomori on leaving Chelsea, when right now, he'd be their starting CB, without question. Tomori has learned Italian and has impressed Italy with how fast it took him to give an interview in Italian. They love him here. So, for me, Shearer has to be there. Our players have talked about how getting a call from Maldini makes things really different. Shearer can be that for you, and why he isn't, I'm unsure, but, I think that selling players onto the goal, the framework, that you're playing for a club, not just some sports franchise, is what makes the difference. Newcastle represents more than just the stripes on the shirt, St. James is more than a stadium, the fans are people who will fight for you as long as you fight for them, even if you lose. It's an easy sell. It's easier when it's Shearer, and for us, we have Maldini and Baresi making those pitches. That's the difference, I think.

I didn't realize we were on the wrong foot to begin with, but glad to know that we're past that. Thank you for your well wishes, I hope you and your family are in the best of health.

To be fair to you, it was.