Andrea Pirlo has dismissed all rumours surrounding his future and has committed himself to AC Milan.
Remember the Kaka-to-Manchester City transfer saga in January: Kaka fluttering the Milan shirt, the Milan fans protesting against the move, Silvio Berlusconi forced to negotiate and then breaking off talks while Kaka proclaimed his love for the club and his relief at having put the entire matter behind him?
Andrea Pirlo's broken Chelsea move this summer assumed a similar tone. No, this wasn't a mega-headline making, website crashing news that the entire world stopped to watch unfold, but until Pirlo's and Milan's declarations last Wednesday that Chelsea's offer has been declined for good, no one was quite sure how this would end.
Milan's obvious financial problems made Pirlo’s Chelsea switch likely, Carlo Ancelotti had reactivated Pirlo's career at the start of the century and was eager to do something similar with him at Chelsea and the player himself was ambiguous in his quotes.
Pirlo's eventual Milan stay is almost, but not quite, 'a new signing'. On other occasions this cliche might appear ridiculous but with the way things have unfolded at Milan, who have missed out on their first choice summer targets due to their inability to cough up the money, the World Cup winner's decision to carry on for the Rossoneri must indeed be something to be relieved about.
Apparently Good…..
The reasons of course are plenty. Pirlo is one of the best and proven players at Milan who still has the ability to rescue himself and the team. A deep-lying playmaker of marvellous vision and remarkable balance of play, Pirlo has the ability to build up the game from the back and give the team more balance and stability.
Andrea Pirlo's broken Chelsea move this summer assumed a similar tone. No, this wasn't a mega-headline making, website crashing news that the entire world stopped to watch unfold, but until Pirlo's and Milan's declarations last Wednesday that Chelsea's offer has been declined for good, no one was quite sure how this would end.
Milan's obvious financial problems made Pirlo’s Chelsea switch likely, Carlo Ancelotti had reactivated Pirlo's career at the start of the century and was eager to do something similar with him at Chelsea and the player himself was ambiguous in his quotes.
Pirlo's eventual Milan stay is almost, but not quite, 'a new signing'. On other occasions this cliche might appear ridiculous but with the way things have unfolded at Milan, who have missed out on their first choice summer targets due to their inability to cough up the money, the World Cup winner's decision to carry on for the Rossoneri must indeed be something to be relieved about.
Apparently Good…..
The reasons of course are plenty. Pirlo is one of the best and proven players at Milan who still has the ability to rescue himself and the team. A deep-lying playmaker of marvellous vision and remarkable balance of play, Pirlo has the ability to build up the game from the back and give the team more balance and stability.
Chelsea wouldn't have gained much had Pirlo been signed by Ancelotti - after all, the Blues already have enough creative midfielders - but Milan would have lost a vital piece of their jigsaw. New coach Leonardo has declared that he will play in an attacking 4-3-1-2 formation implying that Pirlo will be one of three midfielders behind Ronaldinho.
Although Hernanes had been linked with a move to Milan and is still supposed to be a long-term replacement for the former Inter player, whether he can instantly click or not remains an issue.
But Still…..
Pirlo’s performance can be both good and bad and this can make discussions on him ‘divisive’. In the last two years the 30-year-old has featured in 59 Serie A matches and 11 times in Europe, missing several games last season due to injury. There have been mixed performances for Milan: on the basis of some Pirlo still remains a world class playmaker with devastating qualities while on the basis of others he is past his prime.
Although Pirlo's performance for Milan over the past two seasons has been, shall we say, satisfactory, it has been more symptomatic of the club's downward spiral than anything. Il Diavolo's Champions League success in 2007 was their last major trophy and since then the wheels have been coming off.
Moreover, Pirlo is one of those 'old Milan players'. The joke that Milan is a retirement home is not funny anymore as a number of first-teamers are into their 30s or near about. Milan ought to have taken care of this situation long ago by grooming young blood and integrating them into the system but Silvio Berlusconi's short-sightedness intervened.
Pirlo's departure to Chelsea would have garnered Milan around €20 million plus perhaps a second rate player (possibly striker Claudio Pizarro). These days Milan need to sell to buy and with the €20 million Leonardo could have signed someone younger, possibly Hernanes.
Although Hernanes had been linked with a move to Milan and is still supposed to be a long-term replacement for the former Inter player, whether he can instantly click or not remains an issue.
But Still…..
Pirlo’s performance can be both good and bad and this can make discussions on him ‘divisive’. In the last two years the 30-year-old has featured in 59 Serie A matches and 11 times in Europe, missing several games last season due to injury. There have been mixed performances for Milan: on the basis of some Pirlo still remains a world class playmaker with devastating qualities while on the basis of others he is past his prime.
Although Pirlo's performance for Milan over the past two seasons has been, shall we say, satisfactory, it has been more symptomatic of the club's downward spiral than anything. Il Diavolo's Champions League success in 2007 was their last major trophy and since then the wheels have been coming off.
Moreover, Pirlo is one of those 'old Milan players'. The joke that Milan is a retirement home is not funny anymore as a number of first-teamers are into their 30s or near about. Milan ought to have taken care of this situation long ago by grooming young blood and integrating them into the system but Silvio Berlusconi's short-sightedness intervened.
Pirlo's departure to Chelsea would have garnered Milan around €20 million plus perhaps a second rate player (possibly striker Claudio Pizarro). These days Milan need to sell to buy and with the €20 million Leonardo could have signed someone younger, possibly Hernanes.
The Sao Paulo midfielder might be untried and untested at the ‘highest level’ but is said to be equivalent to Kaka of 2003. Milan's need for young and imaginative players would have been quenched slightly with the arrival of the 24-year-old, who as one respected South American football journalist reckons, "has immense technical quality and is quick but will have to learn to position himself a bit higher up the field."
But to compare Hernanes and Pirlo at this stage would an exercise in futility: one is a proven world class player who can still go strong for two or three more years while the other is a talent still in Brazil. At the moment Milan need strong characters who can rejuvenate themselves as well as the team and Pirlo is one of those players.
Pirlo is a reliable playmaker who can and will deliver the goods and with Alexandre Pato and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar upfront and Ronaldinho playing as a trequartista, his contribution to the revival of Milan will be vital.
But to compare Hernanes and Pirlo at this stage would an exercise in futility: one is a proven world class player who can still go strong for two or three more years while the other is a talent still in Brazil. At the moment Milan need strong characters who can rejuvenate themselves as well as the team and Pirlo is one of those players.
Pirlo is a reliable playmaker who can and will deliver the goods and with Alexandre Pato and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar upfront and Ronaldinho playing as a trequartista, his contribution to the revival of Milan will be vital.
