Milan the truth about the sale of Tonali

After an initial introductory phase, in which the main news was the break in the professional relationship between the Maldini-Massara and AC Milan pair, the transfer market is now finally coming to life. And sure enough, one of the processes that attracts the attention of insiders, journalists, and fans is that of Sandro Tonali transfer from AC Milan to Newcastle. The midfielder born in 2000, the backbone of the Rossoneri midfielder and the U-21 national team (as well as the future backbone of the senior national team) is about to move to the Magpies, an ambitious English Premier League club owned by a consortium of companies led by the Public Investment Fund, It is a sovereign wealth fund of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The numbers on the table are the ones that make your veins and your heart quiver, especially if they are set in the context of our domestic reality; We are actually talking about it The selling price is approximately 80 million euros – A record sale in AC Milan’s history – A six-year contract for the player worth €8m a year plus bonuses. Inevitably, this movement in the market triggered a series of repercussions on several levels touching, for example, on the health of our football (with young talent leaving abroad), and the ability of clubs and players to resist and disappear certain offers. From the so-called “flags”.

If we confine ourselves to observing the Tonali process in a sterile manner and without interference of any other kind, we can say that we are having Excellent market operation, able to completely satisfy both the club and the player, to put it in English a “win-win” process. In all likelihood, Milan only had any intention of giving up his talent for this course Newcastle Court shuffled the cards; After rejecting an initial offer of €60m, subsequent increases by the English led to a fateful and decisive bid of €80m that made the Rossoneri surrender.

For sustainable football and smart corporate governance (a policy vigorously pursued first by Elliott and now by Red Bird), A proposal of this magnitude was indeed indispensable. On the other hand, a large capital gain should be included in the balance sheet in the income statement and at the same time a good injection of liquidity into the coffers of companies that can be immediately reinvested in the next market. Replacing Tonali will obviously not be easy Neither from a technical point of view, nor from a charismatic point of view, however, thanks to the resources derived from selling, both in domestic and foreign markets, interesting opportunities can be seized by bringing home at least two working players. The project, perhaps investing both in a young and future profile (with an identity like Frattesi del Sassuolo) and in a more experienced project ready for certain stages (eg Milinkovic Savic leaving Lazio).

Still, from the perspective of the company’s management, if we had “criticized” Milan for losing players of Donnarumma’s caliber, Calhanoglu and Kessie on free transfers in recent years (whom they could legitimately have aimed for a gross income of at least €100m), This time the Rossoneri played up frontBased on an armored contract with the midfielder, which was renewed in 2022 and expires in 2027. From Tonali’s point of view, moving to Newcastle represents undoubted and also obvious advantages for the player.

If we focus on the economic file, the progress seems clear; From the current 2.5 million euros received in Milan You’ll move to a massively triple salary (€8 million plus €2 million bonus) for the next six years (totaling over €50 million). At the same time, Newcastle, although it does not have the attractiveness or the coat of arms of Milan or other major English clubs today, has a very rich and ambitious estate after qualifying for the next Champions League (thanks to its fourth place in the championship), it will invest more to consolidate himself at a high level in the Premier League (with a view to getting into the fight for the title on a permanent basis) and legitimizing his important role also in Europe.

The opportunity to play in Europe’s most competitive and prestigious tournament (the Premier League) should not be underestimated which can represent an important step in the growth and maturity of a very talented young footballer and figures like Tonali.

Midfielder moving to Newcastle It also opened a heated discussion among the fans, above all because many saw Tonali as the flag of the future for the club as well as in the perspective of the captain of the team (remember that the captain of Milan is currently Calabria); Then the fact that the footballer had chosen the Rossoneri with conviction in the summer of 2020 and after less than a great first year before lowering his salary in order to stay at Milan, with some declarations of love for the club, various clues in this direction.

However, at the same time, it is almost superfluous to highlight how in recent years the world of football has undergone significant changes and the concepts of science or The club’s player icon has irrevocably faded; This is not necessarily due to the sole responsibility of the players but more simply because the issue of belonging to certain colors sometimes also conflicts with the business or budgetary needs of the clubs themselves. Like it was probably said Neither Milan nor Tonali imagine goodbye In the summer of 2023, but in the face of this offer from Newcastle, the club did not have the will or strength to back down, and immediately seized this opportunity, which ultimately brought benefits mainly to the club but also to the player.

Therefore, in a football like this, especially at certain levels, we will somehow have to succumb to the increasing scarcity of those flags and those symbolic players who have linked their careers to a club and its colors over time. Local examples like examples Maldini (Milan), Zanetti (inter), Del Piero (Juventus), Totti (Rome) or symbolic foreign cases such as those of jiggs (Manchester United) e Gerard (Liverpool) It will be more and more “exceptional” cases.

this feeling There will be fewer and fewer truly non-transferable players and even those with the potential stigma of ‘science’ (for technical, tactical and charismatic skills), in the face of performances deemed satisfactory, would be sold by clubs without particular hesitation; and that there would be no “science” that would stand up to significant capital gains and obvious monetization. With all due respect to a football in which passion, heart and attachment to certain colors had more weight (which we as fans regret a bit) and which will give way to a football that is increasingly guided by the “cold” numbers of the company’s budget.

Enrico Bassi, June 27, 2023