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Schalke’s sporting director Jochen Schneider has failed to rule out the sale of Ozan Kabak in January and confirmed Milan’s summer interest.

As Calciomercato.com report, Kabak is a player that remains in Milan’s sights and they could very well go back in for him when the window reopened having failed with an attempt to sign the 20-year-old late in the summer window.


Schalke director Schneider confirmed that he was a target for the Rossoneri during an interview with WAZ, and also failed to rule out the idea he could leave in the next window.

“Milan knocked on our door at the end of the transfer market and a sale at that moment was out of the question for us,” he said.

“I only read what was written in those days. We are still in difficult economic times, this season could be played until the end without spectators. So I can’t and I don’t want to exclude anything.”

Meanwhile, a separate Calciomercato article posted just before the one containing the interview above confirms that Liverpool are also monitoring the Turkey international.

It is believed that Jurgen Klopp is looking for a young and talented centre-back to bolster his defensive ranks after the injury sustained by Virgil van Dijk and Kabak is a player who plays in a league he knows well.

📰SportMediaset: Hakan's agent asks for a salary around €6.5M while Milan management does not intend to go beyond €5M per year, including bonuses.
Calhanoglu attracts the interest of ManUtd and Napoli, as well. But, the player's will is to remain at Milan. https://t.co/n5tUTJwuqN

📰CorSport: There are two names that attract AC Milan's interest to reinforce the defense: one is Ozan Kabak of Schalke 04. The other is Mohamed Simakan of Strasbourg.



MERCATO NEWS

DAZN journalist highlights the key battles between Milan and Lille; discusses Soumare and Leao

By Oliver Fisher - 3 November 2020, 16:02

The game between AC Milan and Lille on Thursday pits two high-flying sides up against each other in the Europa League group stages.

Milan are on a 24-game unbeaten run across all competitions which began when football resumed after lockdown, and they will take on a Lille side who are second in Ligue 1 have won five and lost none of their opening nine league games.

DAZN journalist and Ligue 1 expert Alberto Santi spoke to MilanNews about Thursday’s game including what Milan can expect from Lille and the duels where the game will be won and lost.

On Lille, Santi began: “It is a Lille that is doing very well in the league. The draw with Lyon was accidental, even if it may have revealed a limit of Lille in terms of winning the league.

“To scare PSG, Lille must win a match like the one against Lyon. Lille’s goal is to return to the Champions League, and they are also churning out many talents.”

Who among the Lille squad can cause problems for Pioli’s side?

“Botman, who came for eight million from Ajax. One between him and Josè Fonte should mark Ibrahimovic, even if Fonte has had an eye problem. In goal instead there is Maignan, who is a good goalkeeper, quite reliable. ”

Leao will go up against his former team on Thursday.

“Leao’s performance this year is thanks to Pioli, who returned to use him on the wing and made him run. At Lille he played very advanced,” Santi revealed.

“Lille’s football greatly enhanced the qualities of Leao and Osimhen playing vertical football with a lot of speed. Leao owes everything to Lille. It will certainly be very special for him.”

How much did Ibrahimovic influence Leao’s growth?

“A lot, but in general for the whole of Milan. Ibra is someone who takes pressure off, but at the same time he requires a certain type of performance and this pushes you to give more and more. Leao has improved a lot with Ibra, in fact you can see that has changed a lot. Now Leao is returning Ibrahimovic’s trust.”

In the summer there was talk of Soumarè as a possible midfield target for the Rossoneri.

On him, Sandti said: “In the last period he is finding little game time because he has a lot of competition. There is Renato Sanches, who is essential for Lille, and Andrè, who recovers a lot of balls and does a lot of running.

Soumarè therefore in the last period is losing ground, but we are talking about a 21-year-old player. He needs to improve, once he has recovered the ball, in making the right choice and in the first pass, but he still has great room for improvement. Many time he has been compared to Pogba, but perhaps too many midfielders have been compared to Pogba. ”

What will be the best duel on the pitch?

“Certainly the match between Renato Sanches and Kessie will be among the best, but Botman-Ibrahimovic is no exception. Theo Hernandez will be a problem for Lille, as Lille’s full-backs are only very offensive and don’t track back much.”

📰CM: Manchester City and PSG are keeping an eye on Ismael Bennacer. https://t.co/BwkqRF6yGh

Football Italia

Report: Romagnoli suffers hip injury
Football Italia57 Minutes Ago

Comments
Milan defender Alessio Romagnoli injured his hip during the warm-up ahead of the match against Hellas Verona on Sunday.

The centre-back had been called up by Italy CT Roberto Mancini for this month’s matches, but has later been replaced by Alessandro Bastoni of Inter.

Romagnoli had to stop before the 2-2 draw with the Gialloblu, as Simon Kjaer and Matteo Gabbia took to the pitch in the captain’s absence.

The 25-year-old recently missed 10 games from July to October due to a problem in his calf, but La Gazzetta dello Sport reveals it’s the flexor that caused the setback on Sunday.

He was stopped during the warm-up yesterday and the extent of the injury has yet to be assessed, but he’s not likely to join up with the national team at a later date.

Watch Serie A live in the UK on Premier Sports for just £9.99 per month including live LaLiga, Eredivisie, Scottish Cup Football and more. Visit: https://www.premierspor

The Milan players called up for their national teams during the international break 👇
16 players called up #Milan Italy: Donnarumma, Calabria, Tonali
Under21: Gabbia, Colombo Belgium: Saelemaekers
Turkey:Calhanoglu
Spain U21: Diaz
Portugal U21: Dalot and Leao
Romania: Tatarusanu Norway: Hauge
Algeria: Bennacer
Bosnia: Krunic
Denmark: Kjaer
Costa d ' Ivory: Kessie
[Antonio Vitiello]

The Milan players called up for their national teams during the international break 👇
16 players called up #Milan Italy: Donnarumma, Calabria, Tonali
Under21: Gabbia, Colombo Belgium: Saelemaekers
Turkey:Calhanoglu
Spain U21: Diaz
Portugal U21: Dalot and Leao
Romania: Tatarusanu Norway: Hauge
Algeria: Bennacer
Bosnia: Krunic
Denmark: Kjaer
Costa d ' Ivory: Kessie
[Antonio Vitiello]



PROMOTED - HOMEPAGE THE MATCH

Player Ratings: AC Milan 2-2 Hellas Verona – Midfield duo impresses; key men disappoint

By Isak Möller - 8 November 2020, 23:09

Milan failed to claim all three points this evening despite chances galore against Hellas Verona. In the end, they managed to find the 2-2 equaliser thanks to Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who also missed a penalty.

Starting XI

Donnarumma (6): Wore the captain’s armband this evening as Romagnoli missed out due to injury. Couldn’t do much about the goals and didn’t have any other saves to make. Decent performance all in all.

Calabria (5.5): Not the best performance from the right-back, although he worked very hard for his team this evening. Lost the duel with Zaccagni several times and his crossing was really off. Had a nice effort disallowed for handball.

Kjaer (6.5): No complaints about the Dane’s performance, as he continued to lead by example at the back. Did well to neutralize Kalinic and also showed off his good passing. Maybe he should have done better on the offensive corners.

Gabbia (6.5): Just like his partner, he can’t really be faulted for the goals that Milan conceded. After all, Verona had just three shots on target and the youngster did well to replace Romagnoli. Lacked a bit of pace in some situations, though.

Hernandez (5): The Frenchman was behind Milan’s 2-2 goal with a powering run, but he also missed two sitters to bring his side back earlier. Unfortunately, these misses affect his rating a lot, as you simply can’t afford to miss those.

Kessie (7): Another good performance by the Ivorian, who used his strength and stamina to win back the ball several times. He was also involved in the attacking phase, making the run for the 1-1 goal which was put down as an own-goal in the end.

Bennacer (7): The former Empoli man was crucial once again, working just as hard as his partner in the middle. Focused a bit more on the passing, mostly long ones, and the midfield tandem really kept Milan in the game.

Saelemaekers (6.5): The Belgian did really well in the first half and thus it came as a surprise when Pioli took him off at the interval. Got the assist for the first goal with a perfect cross and looked a lot stronger than usual.

Calhanoglu (5.5): He tried very hard to create chances but couldn’t find the decisive pass. Had a few good corners towards the end but he also had several bad ones, and it’s clear he must improve his final touch.

Leao (6): A bit similar to Calhanoglu, as the final touch was missing more often than not. Made a few good runs with his step-overs on the left flank but ultimately, it wasn’t a spectacular performance by the Portuguese.

Ibrahimovic (6): If he hadn’t missed that penalty, his rating would have been higher. He did manage to score the equaliser in the end and was also heavily involved in the Rossoneri’s attack, as they opted for long balls this evening.

Substitutes

Rebic (6.5): Milan looked a lot better once the Croatian came on and he was crucial in Milan’s final attempts to find the equaliser. A performance he should be pleased with, having just returned from injury.

Diaz (6): Got the decisive assist for Ibrahimovic’s equaliser but he didn’t really add much to the Rossoneri’s attack besides that. Decent overall though.

Hauge: N/A

Zlatan Ibrahimović for Sky Sport:

About the match:

Today's draw is nothing good for us. We had many goals to score. I missed a penalty kick. I think Kessie will be doing it next time. We made too many mistakes today, but we need to move on. The important thing is that we didn't lose and we didn't lose our confidence. We want to win every game.

About anger:

I was angry with myself. When you are tired you don't give 100% of yourself. We are forced to play many games in a fairly short time. Fortunately, we will have a break for the national teams and we will be able to rest a bit. We lacked accuracy under the opponent's goal. It was not the best meeting that I performed.

About Scudetto:

Before the start of each season, you need to set some goals. If we go out on the pitch, we must have a clearly set goal and fight for something. At least that's my mentality. A lot of teams are fighting for the Scudetto. We will see who will do best physically.

About rotation:

We are forced to play in quite short intervals. This was the last time I played with such intensity in Manchester. Playing on Thursdays is very complicated because there is little time for preparing to the next games.

About the changes to Serie A:

The league is stronger with Ibra. Once upon a time, Hellas and Atalanta did not play at the proper level. More and more teams are fighting on the field. I have played in many countries and I can confidently say that Serie A is the most difficult for a forward.

About tP

Football Italia

Milan: Saelemaekers returns from Belgium
Football Italia16 Minutes Ago

Comments
Milan winger Alexis Saelemaekers has suffered an injury and returns from international duty with Belgium.

The 21-year-old former Anderlecht player was called up for the three games against Switzerland, England and Denmark, but the Red Devils announced he has returned to Italy.

“Because of injury Saelemaekers, Leandro Trossard and Henrik van Crombrugge returned to their clubs,” Belgium wrote in a statement.

“Thomas Kaminski joins the team.”

Saelemaekers joined Milan on loan in January 2020 and later signed a permanent deal with the Diavolo.

He played his first and only match for Belgium in October 2020, havin impressed in his 26 competitive games since joining the Rossoneri.

Stefano Pioli for Milan TV, Milannews.it and Sky Sport:

About the match:

We are not satisfied with this result because we wanted to win this game. Mentally, our team has shown that they have developed a lot and are able to fight until the very end. Despite the rather unfavorable result, we managed to draw.

Fatigue makes itself felt more and more. We take full responsibility for the loss of two goals. Fortunately, we were able to react appropriately. We have to learn from this meeting and get back on track. We have the right mentality that allows us to achieve a lot. We have to keep it.

About the team:

This season is very demanding for us both in Italy and in European cups. There is no point in talking too much about fatigue. We've made a great effort to get back to the European cups and we know what it entails. As a team, we have to play with more concentration and work more on the pitch. After defeating Lille, we wanted to win the league right away. Unfortunately, we were not very careful and we seriously damaged ourselves. We are a young but mature team. We must be aware of our abilities and overcome all difficulties.

What did you tell the players during the break?

We believed in victory all the time. During the break we tried to properly motivate and we believed in our abilities. We said to ourselves that we cannot lose this game.

About Bennacer:

In my opinion, he played a fantastic match. He has developed a lot recently and presents the right quality on the pitch.

Recently, the team has had a problem with set pieces. How will you relate to it?

We need to improve on set pieces and stay more focused. We have the right features to do this.

What to expect from the team after the break for the national team?

I hope my players will get some rest and feel better. Soon we will have a very intense period. From the next match, I expect that our team will play much better and maintain our mentality.

About Ibrahimović:

After the game, he told me that he was sorry for today's result because it was possible to win this game. Most likely, Kessie will be taking next penalty kicks. Ibra is right that our team is tired. Playing on several fronts costs us a lot of energy. Due to the Europa League, we started this season quite early. We actually only had a 3 week break between the seasons. It is not much time. However, we cannot complain about the current situation. We must strike a balance and learn from our recent results. We want to do better than last season and in European cups.

Football Italia

Ibrahimovic: 'Leaving the next penalty!'
Football Italia28 Minutes Ago

Comments
Zlatan Ibrahimovic was amusingly self-deprecating after missing a penalty and scoring Milan’s equaliser with Verona. ‘I’m leaving the next one to Franck Kessie!’

It was quite a night for the Swede, who missed his third consecutive penalty, hit the woodwork with a header, forced a series of saves, his handball ruined a Davide Calabria goal and he scored the 93rd-minute equaliser.

“I am angry, obviously, because a draw today is not good enough,” Ibrahimovic told Sky Sport Italia before breaking into a smile.

“We had so many chances, I missed a penalty and I think I’m leaving the next one to Kessie! That would be better…

“We conceded two goals, got two back, we go forward and the important thing is not to lose our confidence. Considering the way the table is now, we want to win every game.”

On the penalty, Marco Silvestri said ‘didn’t you miss the last one?’ just as Ibra was making the run-up.

“He’s not wrong, I did miss the last one,” smiled Zlatan.

“There are many games now and when you get tired, you are not always at 100 per cent. Fortunately, the break for international duty is here, because I need rest. I didn’t have the sharpness and usual determination I have in front of goal. I just felt like I wasn’t all there.

“We have to play for objectives, we can’t just go out there and be happy to play. At least, I can’t, it’s not my philosophy.”

This week, Ibrahimovic posted an image on Instagram of him wearing the Sweden jersey. Did that mean he wants a recall?

“No, I was just trying to irritate people in Sweden,” he grinned.

For all the faux arrogance, Ibrahimovic confessed he can’t say no to pulling on his football boots.

“The coach can tell me you’re playing 45 minutes and that’s it, I am a professional, I say yes. I remember in Manchester it was really tough to play on Thursday and then recover. After the injury I had, which could’ve been the end there, I feel like a kid just being able to step onto the pitch. I feel the sheer joy of playing football.

“I see more teams now that are fighting for higher up the table and it wasn’t sides like Atalanta in the past. I’ve played in many countries and I can confirm Italy is the toughest for strikers.

“There are many teams challenging for the top, there are some that haven’t reached their peak yet. It’s a packed agenda, so the side in the best shape will eventually win the Scudetto.”

Ibra was asked if he missed the Ballon d’Or and other personal silverware.

“No, trophies are nice and all, but I don’t need those to feel strong. I am playing, trying to do my best to help my teammates and that’s it.”

He just turned 39, so will he extend his contract at Milan next season?

“After today, I don’t think it’s looking good!”

Zlatan Ibrahimović for Sky Sport:

About the match:

Today's draw is nothing good for us. We had many goals to score. I missed a penalty kick. I think Kessie will be doing it next time. We made too many mistakes today, but we need to move on. The important thing is that we didn't lose and we didn't lose our confidence. We want to win every game.

About anger:

I was angry with myself. When you are tired you don't give 100% of yourself. We are forced to play many games in a fairly short time. Fortunately, we will have a break for the national teams and we will be able to rest a bit. We lacked accuracy under the opponent's goal. It was not the best meeting that I performed.

About Scudetto:

Before the start of each season, you need to set some goals. If we go out on the pitch, we must have a clearly set goal and fight for something. At least that's my mentality. A lot of teams are fighting for the Scudetto. We will see who will do best physically.

About rotation:

We are forced to play in quite short intervals. This was the last time I played with such intensity in Manchester. Playing on Thursdays is very complicated because there is little time for preparing to the next games.

About the changes to Serie A:

The league is stronger with Ibra. Once upon a time, Hellas and Atalanta did not play at the proper level. More and more teams are fighting on the field. I have played in many countries and I can confidently say that Serie A is the most difficult for a forward.

About the Golden Ball:

It doesn't bother me that I have never won a Golden Ball. I don't need her to feel stronger. I always do my best to help my teammates.

🎙️Zaccardo spoke to MilanTV: "Rafael Leao reminds me of Niang's beginnings but Leao is even stronger physically. He'd be even more devastating if he could be more continuous and concrete. He has all the means to be a top player. It won't be easy for Rebic to return as starter." https://t.co/KF6shJUNJl

TMW: Contacts ongoing for Kessie’s contract renewal until 2024. No final agreement yet. Possible new contacts during the international break

Arrigo #Sacchi spoke to @Corriere about Stefano #Pioli: "Very good person, he must give an even stronger identity to the team.
His teams have common sense, but not such a strong identity and with the youngsters you have to give it to them, they need to be built".

Arrigo Sacchi spoke of Ibrahimovic to @Gazzetta_it: "A true champion, an authentic example. Did you see what he did Vs Verona?

He kicked the penalty very badly, a normal one could have got depressed, instead he was charged even more, went to get the draw with his teeth. He has a crazy personality, sometimes he has to keep it under control.

He must not be too demanding with his teammates and scold them if they miss a pass. Sometimes a caress is better than a scolding.

But I see that the others consider him their beacon & this is important"[AcmilanGodfather]on twitter

Danilo D’Ambrosio and Alessio Romagnoli arrived in Florence last night and have been subjected to tests this morning before they can join the #Italy squad.
#Azzurri #UNL #SerieA #ACMilan #FCIM #Fiorentina #ASRoma #Sassuolo https://t.co/eU1CT5aQ77

Alessio Tacchinardi spoke of Zlatan Ibrahimovic who missed a penalty Vs Verona and then scored the goal for 2-2: "Knowing him, he went away pissed after the match.
He's not good at penalties, but kicks them because he wants to take responsibility.
Now will let Kessie kick them”