Galliani: ‘At Milan for the summer’

By Football Italia staff

Adriano Galliani confirms he’ll stay at Milan for “at least” the summer transfer campaign.

A Chinese consortium is in the process of buying-over the Rossoneri, but the deal won’t be completed until after the window shuts, even if it goes through.

“Certainly I’ll remain [joint] CEO of Milan whatever happens, at least until the closing,” Galliani confirmed at Vincenzo Montella’s presentation Press conference.

“When that time comes we’ll evaluate what to do. That’s the absolute truth. I’m not worried about what will happen in October, but what will happen in July and August.

“My commitment is total and absolute up until the closing, which is expected to take place at the end of September.

“Whatever decision is taken, it’ll be agreed with President [Silvio] Berlusconi, with whom I have a bond for life. I’ve been with him for 37 years, so all that will be agreed with Berlusconi. Right now I’m really not thinking about it.”

With that settled, Galliani was then quizzed about his recruitment plans for the summer.

“There’s a definite mission, we’ve talked about the transfer market. The mission is always the same: to win, to convince, to entertain.

“That’s the idea that we’ve had for 30 years now. What’s positive is that the President really wants to talk about football.

“We’ll make every effort to strengthen the team on the transfer market. We’ll share it, and every decision must be signed off by me and [Nicholas] Ganickoff.

“If we don’t agree then we’ll move on to another target. We’re working very well, and on a personal level I’m adapting.

“If the preliminary agreement is signed, the closing will be after the closing of the transfer window. We’ve achieved some goals, there are others we’re still reaching for.

“Certainly both Ganickoff and I have talked with Montella, and he’s clear about what he wants. We’ll try to satisfy him as much as possible and get some important players.

“In my mind it’s clear what players he wants, and he knows it.

“As things stand Milan could keep all the players we have, because we have 29, four of whom are Under-21, which takes you to the 25.

“Some will surely leave, but in theory we could register for the League now. We’re fortunate to have so many Under-21s, we have [Gigi] Donnarumma, [Davide] Calabria, [Alessio] Romagnoli, [Manuel] Locatelli and [Jose] Mauri.

“Once we were accused of being too old and now we have youngsters. We’re creating a young, strong team which can aim for any goal once the transfer campaign is over.

“There’s work to do, but we’ve started well.

“The transfer campaign is very simple right now: [Gianluca] Lapadula and [Leonel] Vangioni have come in, [Michael] Agazzi, [Gabiriel] Paletta, [Jherson] Vergara, [Alessandro] Matri, Suso and [Simone] Verdi have returned from loan and [Stephan] El Shaarawy has been transferred to Roma.

“Five players left at the end of their contract and I want to take this opportunity to thank them. The squad has already changed and it’ll be further modified.

“We have a clear idea who should leave, but of course we’ll have to find a team to buy them and team who the player will accept. It’s very difficult to find a ‘wife’ for a player who wants to leave Milan.

“That also applies to buying new players. The brand is very strong and the city is known throughout the world.

“No-one says no to Milan, it’s just an issue of finance. Getting them to leave is more complicated.

“Football is all about ups-and-downs. Don’t forget that five years ago, Juventus were coming off two seventh-place finishes.

“By changing Coach and players they turned things around.”

Finally, Galliani was asked about the potential Chinese takeover, but was reluctant to comment.

“The negotiation is being conducted between Fininvest and the Chinese group, so I can’t give any answers on that.

“Milan is the object, not the subject. Questions should be directed to Fininvest. That aside, I don’t know the names of the investors.

“Berlusconi? He’s dealing with it well, because he’s convinced it’s for the good of Milan. He remains a huge fan of Milan, and he’s very calm and confident of doing something good for Milan.

“He’s always said that when it comes to the team he makes decisions with his heart, not from a business perspective.

“He’s sad, but he’s convinced this is the best solution to ensure a bright future for Milan.”

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