According to a source, AC Milan’s administration still wants to add another striker to improve the striking department, despite Luka Jovic’s excellent record.
This morning’s edition of La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) discusses Jovic’s ‘perfect month’ and how it has transformed his standing at Milan from ghost to useful contributor. He has five goals in 15 games, with one every 115 minutes.
The goal against Cagliari in the Coppa Italia the other night was his first for the Rossoneri, following goals against Frosinone, Atalanta, and Salernitana. From the beginning of December to the present, no one has done better than him: Jovic is the Serie A player with the most goals in all competitions.
Is redesigning the Rossoneri attack’s hierarchy sufficient? No, not yet: Giroud was and continues to be the starting No.9, but Jovic has showed Stefano Pioli that he can now rely on him. Will it be enough for Milan to rethink their market situations in front of goal? That will not change either.
What about Jovic’s future, given that his contract expires in June? If his performance over the last thirty days is any indication, a happy conclusion is on the way, and the last-minute transfer from Fiorentina to Milan on the final day of the transfer window will be dubbed the deal of the year.
Milan tried everything from Morata to Scamacca, Broja to Taremi, and Rafa Mir and Jonathan David – both last-minute loan attempts – until Furlani, Moncada, and D’Ottavio settled on the Serbian.
After arriving to Milanello with the ’emergency’ label attached to him, it took Jovic some time to come out of his funk and find an acceptable physical condition. Pioli utilized unconventional approaches with him, and the more Luka struggled, the more opportunities he was given.
What about tomorrow?
The strategy will differ from that of recent striker additions in that Milan’s new centre-forward will not be over 30 like Ibrahimovic, Giroud, and Mandzukic.
Jonathan David of Lille remains the name circled in red for June, but if opportunities arise during the January transfer window that are within the management’s budget, they will be ready to grasp them.
Serhou Guirassy is still on the list because of this. The 27-year-old Stuttgart native has 19 goals in 16 appearances and is accustomed to playing alongside Pioli’s center-forwards. The €17 million release clause is reasonable, but the player’s €5 million net wage demands consideration.
Without the Growth Decree’s tax breaks, Guirassy’s gross income would climb from €6.5m to €9.2m, despite competition from the Premier League and now Bayern Munich, not to mention Guirassy’s participation in the Africa Cup of Nations this month.
