Carlo Pellegatti reports that AC Milan tried to sell Franck Kessie in order to sign back defensive midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko.
Tiemoue Bakayoko has left good memories for AC Milan fans in his only season with the Rossoneri. After a negative start, Gennaro Gattuso placed him in the right position in front of the defense and the performances of the French midfielder immediately improved.
His stay would have been desirable but the high fee demands of Chelsea made the operation impractical for AC Milan. Chelsea wanted 35 million euros to let the player join Milan on a permanent transfer. Too much money for the Rossoreni, struggling with a constantly passive balance and no income from the Champions League. Bakayoko returned to Chelsea and then went on loan to Monaco at the end of the summer.
Carlo Pellegatti, a well-known journalist close to the Rossoneri, revealed that Milan tried to purchase the midfielder last summer. The plan was to sell Franck Kessie to Monaco in order to finance Bakayoko’s return. The transfer of Franck Kessie to Monaco was very close but the player and his agent backed out at the last moment.
The Rossoneri planned to partner the newly arrived Ismael Bennacer with a defensive midfielder like Tiemoue, who had already done well in his first season in Italy. According to Pellegatti, it should not be excluded that Milan could try to sell Kessie again to buy Bakayoko. However, he believes that Bakayoko’s not positive season in France could be an obstacle.
Surely the French midfielder would have been quite useful for Stefano Pioli. An ideal partner for Bennacer in Pioli’s 4-2-3-1. A well-matched couple, given that the Algerian is more a regista while Bakayoko a ball winning midfielder. Tiemoue Bakayoko made 42 appearances during his one year at San Siro.
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