Rafael Leão was substituted for loud booing on Sunday, as his season has gone from bad to worse. – Not only him in general, AC Milan’s poor results recently led to “all” bosses and owners having to come to a crisis meeting today.
Although Manchester United’s main focus in the summer transfer window is to strengthen the central midfield – following the expected departures of Casemiro and Manuel Ugarte – the club is also ready to look at other parts of the squad.
Read: Juventus exit could open the door for Emil Holm
The Red Devils have seen a significant financial boost as the team is now back in the Champions League for the first time since the 2023/24 season. At that time, Manchester United were eliminated in the group stage in the old format. Next season, more games await to qualify for the playoffs.
First and foremost, the Manchester United management must decide whether to appoint Michael Carrick as the club’s next permanent manager, or look for other options.
Michael Carrick is one of the main candidates for the job after leading the club to a probable third place finish and Champions League play. He has beaten Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool in the last four months.
The 44-year-old has to go through an interview, and the club also plans to talk to other candidates.
Manchester United target Rafael Leão
Reports from last month suggest that Manchester United are among the Premier League clubs that have made contact about a summer deal for Leão, who looks set to leave AC Milan.
It has once again been an unstable season for the talented striker. He scored two goals against Fiorentina in October – his first goal at the San Siro in 17 months.
That’s a startling statistic for a player with the Portuguese’s skills. Still, he has nine goals and three assists in 28 Serie A appearances for Milan this season.
Leão is said to be available for £60 million this summer, and it is starting to be questioned among fans whether he has already given up mentally.
The 26-year-old was booed when he left the pitch during the team’s 3-2 loss to Atalanta on Sunday. His efforts were referred to as “another black mark” on the season by Italian media.
Milan have now lost five of their last eight league games and dropped from second to fourth. They are in serious danger of dropping out of the Champions League places, as they are only ahead of Roma in head-to-head clashes and only two points ahead of sixth-placed Como.
Read: The weekend in Europe! PSG close in on league gold – while AC Milan stumbles in Serie A
Zlatan in crisis meeting with AC Milan tops
According to Sky Sports, the club has held an emergency meeting during the day, where Zlatan Ibrahimovic was present.
Ten minutes into the second half of Milan’s match against Atalanta on Sunday, large parts of the Milan supporters at the Curva Sud chose to leave the arena.
The action is described in the Italian media as a protest against the club’s management, and not least against director Giorgio Furlani.
Now Sky Sports Italia reports that the same Furlani called an emergency meeting on Monday. The channel states that sports director Igli Tare and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who is an advisor to Milan’s owner Redbird Capital, were present, among others.
At the meeting, the current situation in the club and the way forward were discussed.
AC Milan have a worrying amount of debris in their machinery at the moment and have two straight losses in league play. At the same time, the club is fighting a hard battle to secure a Champions League spot for next season.
