Inter Milan had a better season than their rivals AC Milan last season. In the transfer market, though, it’s the latter who have won the race against their city counterparts. AC Milan have reportedly reached an agreement for a loan move for Brescia star Sandro Tonali, as per renowned Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano.
Earlier, Romano had confirmed that Tonali had agreed personal terms with Inter. But the agreement was eventually reached by Brescia with the red half of Milan as Tonali makes his way back to the Italian Serie A.
The loan move also consists of a buy option for Milan. Considering the prospects of the Italian midfielder, it seems highly likely that his new recruiters will make his arrival permanent next season.
Nevertheless, Tonali would be a huge addition to the top-half club. Here is a detailed analysis of how AC Milan could lineup with Tonali and how the central midfielder could take them to new heights.
How AC Milan Will Lineup With Tonali Next Season
The Milan Setup With Sandro Tonali
Stefano Pioli’s Milan play in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Ismaël Bennacer and Franck Kessié as the two pivots in the center of the park. Though the duo has been very influential for the club this past season, there is always a scope of improvement, especially when the sleeping giants of Italian football finished outside the top five last season.
Kessié put in some really impressive performances last season. Amongst him and Bennacer, the Ivorian actually manages to tick both the defensive and offensive boxes. Kessié had four goals and one assists this past season compared to Bennacer’s sole goal. Not only that, but the Ivory Coast International topples his counterpart in better passing statistics too.
There is no doubt Kessié will be a fixture in the first team squad for Pioli. Tonali would have to rotate with Bennacer and, if he proves his worth, he might just take his fellow team-mate’s first team role.
Nevertheless, with Tonali (20), Bennacer (22) and Kessié (23) at the heart of the Milan midfield, the Italian giants are set to build a team for the long term.
Tonali in comparison with Kessié and Bennacer
Tonali is a deep lying playmaker in the hiding. Due to Brescia’s lack of quality in the midfield, the young Italian was usually rotated between the central midfield and the defensive midfield position. But Tonali prefers coming deeper to take part in more action.
The 20-year-old had more goal contributions (8) than Kessié and Bennacer combined (6), despite having a deeper role for Brescia in the Serie A last season.
His defensive statistics are not bad either. Tonali made 14 blocks in 35 appearances last season. This puts Kessié’s figure of four blocks to shame. In fact, Bennacer too had just six blocks in the entire season, last year.
In the final third, Tonali is probably one of the best Italian midfielders as of late. He averages 1.9 key passes every 90 minutes, which is exponentially more than Kessié (0.9) and Bennacer’s (0.9) figures for the past season.
At the age of 20, Tonali surely seems like an Italian midfield maestro in the making. No wonder he has been touted as ‘The Next Pirlo’. Should Sandro Tonali complete a move to Milan, he will propel the Italian giants to the next level.
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