Hakan Calhanoglu, just arrived from Bayer Leverkusen, is the most liked among the seven signings so far. Fans have fallen in love with the 23 year old free kick maestro.
That the rossoneri fans were exalted for Bayer Leverkusen’s attacking midfielder, Hakan Calhanoglu, arrival was already clear last week when the first rumors of an interest in the Turkish 23 year old started circulating. The good feeling was obvious in the first hours of his arrival in Italy and while he was signing the contract with AC Milan. The red and blacks supporters have literally gone crazy, waiting for the former Bayer Leverkusen player exit and acclaiming with an enthusiasm that was missing for a ling time in this parts. In yesterday’s first pre-season training under the guidance of manager Montella, fans continued to cheer his name.
Of the seven purchases made so far by Marco Fassone and Massimiliano Mirabelli, the 23 year old attacking midfielder was surely the most heard by the fans, even more than the signing of Andre Silva from Porto for 38 million euros. The reason is easy to understand. Milan fans have been waiting for years for a prominent and crystal clear player for the offensive department, orphaned by a real number 10 ever since. We know well how much the rossoneri crowd likes this type of footballer, of whom the 23 year old is certainly part of.
For many years, the old management led by Silvio Berlusconi and Adriano Galliani had deeply underestimated this aspect, limiting itself only to buying attackers with the (few) resources available. Hakan Calhanoglu has been signed for 25 million euros (bonuses included), a hefty amount but not too much for today’s transfer market. A fee that can’t be valued as too much even for old Milan. Yet in all these years no pure fantasista has passed through the gates of Milanello with an obvious progressive technical depletion. Marco Fassone and Massimiliano Mirabelli managed to fill this gap with a player who can really make the difference, in the short and in the medium and long term.
Calhanoglu, whose primary position is attacking midfielder can also play on the left and in the center of the midfield. In the recent months he was suspended by TAS. The ban relates to a dispute between Calhanoglu and the Turkish club of Trabzonspor which occurred in 2011 while he was playing for Karlsruher. At the time the 23 year old reached an agreement with Trabzonspor regarding a transfer to the club, before then extending his contract at Karlsruhe and later signing for Hamburg. During this time he has been training with a personal trainer and is now ready to return on the pitch.
