Massimiliano Allegri is delighted to have Luka Modric on board after describing his determination to bring AC Milan to the Champions League.
Allegri returned to Milan in May after an absence of 11 years and was presented to the media today.
The 57-year-old sports director and the new Igli Tare sportsman has already made movements on the transfer market with Allegri confirming the imminent departure of Theo Hernandez in Al-Hilal while the veal Madrid veteran midfielder, Modric, will arrive after the club World Cup.
Croatian Modric is now 39 years old but will join Milan when his contract at Santiago Bernabeu will expire.
“We are waiting for him to join us, he will be here in August,” said Allegri. “He is an important and extraordinary player.”
The pre-season begins here 💪#Sempremilan pic.twitter.com/bvrmfwczuz
– AC Milan (@acmilan) July 5, 2025
Allegri: the goal is to return to the Champions League
Allegri won the Scudetto during his first fate in San Siro and expects the club to do better next season than the eighth place they have succeeded in the mandate last mandate.
He added: “It is difficult to find explanations in football and it is not for me to say what happened last year. Today, a new season begins and we have to focus on this.
“”[Last season] AC Milan won a trophy, they played in the final of Coppa Italia and they played big games. There is no need for a revolution, we have to work on good things done, so it’s up to me to make the team as strong as possible. We will need great dedication in daily work.
“We are starting to train and we have to start the season with enthusiasm, passion, determination and sense of responsibility. We must create the conditions to achieve our objectives at the end of the year: the first objective is to return to the Champions League, in March, we must be in this position.
“We can only get there with work and improve everything. We will try to achieve the best possible results, it must be the goal, never be satisfied. ”
Maignan and Leao to stay in Milan
Goalkeeper Mike Maignan and winger Rafael Leao were linked to moves, but Allegri seemed confident that the two would remain in Milan next season.
He said, “Mike is one of the best goalkeepers in Europe, I am happy that he has decided to stay and he will be the captain of the team.
“Rafa is an extraordinary player and he will have an excellent season, he matures well. I think he is more responsible. I met him this morning and we talked, he has all the conditions to do well.”
Allegri has been unemployed since his limot by Juventus in May 2024. He had two spells with the Bianconeri with the first particularly fruitful, leading the club with five crowns of Serie A and four coppas Italia.
Its second passage was less successful, Juve won only the COPPA Italia 2024 before being dismissed.
His return to Milan was not universally welcomed by fans who continue to express their frustration towards the club under the owners Redbird Capital.
Allegri knows that he has work on his hands but called everyone to stop in the right direction.
“The only way to find the faith of fans is to work in a responsible manner and to obtain results that are the most important thing in football,” he said. “First, we must become a team, then the results will come. Fans will have to give us a hand, we absolutely need it.”
Milan opened his season with a Coppa Italia match against Bari before their first series of Serie a against Cremona on August 23.
