Cardinale flies to Milan to conduct Allegri talks, Goretzka deal and striker search

Gerry Cardinale will be in Milan for the final Serie A match of the season against Cagliari on Sunday, and the Rossoneri owner is expected to conduct talks with head coach Massimiliano Allegri, seal a deal for Leon Goretzka and discuss the club’s plans to bring in a new striker during his visit to Italy.

Milan are on the verge of sealing their qualification for next season’s Champions League. The team are in third place heading into the final round of 2025-26 fixtures and have a two-point buffer between themselves and fifth place.

Qualifying for the Champions League is a goal that Allegri has referenced on countless occasions this season, and once Milan’s top four status is confirmed, the coach will have his contract automatically extended by a further year until the summer of 2028.

Amid reports of interest from Napoli as well as being a rumoured candidate for the vacant Italy national team job, La Gazzetta dello Sport reports that Cardinale will do everything in his powers to convince Allegri to stay with Milan for 2026-27.

La Gazzetta dello Sport claims that if Milan beat Cagliari in Serie A this weekend, it is difficult to envisage Allegri leaving San Siro this summer.

When Allegri and Cardinale speak in the coming days, the coach is expected to ask for certain guarantees on the transfer market.

The first recruit is expected to be Germany international Leon Goretzka, who will be leaving Bayern Munich on a free transfer upon the expiry of his contract in June. The 31-year-old has reportedly already spoken to the Rossoneri management and is ‘convinced’ by the project.

The next priority will be the search for a new striker. Among the names to be linked with Milan in recent weeks are Dusan Vlahovic from Juventus, Jean-Phillipe Mateta from Crystal Palace, Goncalo Ramos from PSG and Serhou Guirassy from Borussia Dortmund.