Milan are reportedly closing in on a possible deal for Barcelona defender Jean-Clair Todibo as he could become our second signing this month.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic returned this week to give all concerned a major lift, but it would certainly be welcomed to see further reinforcements arrive in January to boost our chances of securing a top-four finish in Serie A.
SEE MORE: Why Ibrahimovic’s return to Milan could be crucial for number of key figures
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Todibo has now given the green light to a switch to join us, but talks are still ongoing between Milan and Barcelona to reach an agreement on the terms of the deal.
Pros to signing Todibo
At just 20 years of age, Milan would be sticking to their transfer strategy and signing another talented young player with a lot of upside, both in terms of his ability on the pitch and his value off it.
Todibo has struggled for playing time since his move to Barcelona, but he has all the physical attributes and characteristics to suggest that he could develop and improve into a top defender when he’s able to gain invaluable experience and maturity that comes with playing time.
Milan need to find a reliable and long-term partner for Alessio Romagnoli to form a solid foundation in the heart of the defence for the team to build on. Mateo Musacchio has made far too mistakes and is arguably too vulnerable to be seen as the solution, while Mattia Caldara and Leo Duarte are coming back from serious injuries.
In turn, Todibo could be a timely solution in the short-term with a view of being a long-term pillar in the side if his touted move is a success, and it arguably has a similar feel to the move for Theo Hernandez in terms of a young talent under-utilised at a big club elsewhere and who is now given a big opportunity to prove their worth.
Cons to signing Todibo
As per respected journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, it has been suggested that a buy-back clause will be included in any deal to give Barcelona the option to re-sign Todibo if he wishes to return.
That would leave his future open to either settling at Milan and seeing a long-term future with us, or developing his talent, being given a second chance at Barcelona and wanting to return at some point with the door open for that possibility.
Ultimately, we need to be signing fully-committed players who have no hint of split loyalties, and so the possible buy-back aspect of the deal is a real drawback.
Further, what would signing Todibo mean for Caldara? Yes, he’s had a complete nightmare with injuries since he joined us. However, it would surely be a huge shame to see him fail to even get a chance to stake his claim in the side when fully fit before either falling down the pecking order or being shipped out to make space for Todibo.
It would be preferable if we at least gave him that shot at establishing himself next to Romagnoli as we all hoped he would have by now, but it will seemingly become increasingly difficult for that to happen if we bring in another central defender with the last 18 months waiting for him being a complete waste.
There are other factors to consider in that perhaps a system switch to a three-man backline could be in the offing, hence why we’re looking to sign another defender. Further, it doesn’t necessarily mean the end for Caldara as Milan may opt to offload someone else instead.
Time will tell how the situation plays out, but it certainly seems as though we’re very much pushing for Todibo to become a Milan player by the end of the month.