AC Milan have been given a boost in their pursuit of Joshua Zirkzee as the idea of a return to Bayern Munich is now unlikely, a report claims.
The publication La Gazzetta dello Sport writes that Zirkzee must decide his future in the next two months, based on the interested clubs.
In recent weeks there have been many rumors about Bayern Munich having a chance to re-sign him for 40 million euros. However, the German club now has other priorities and this striker is not interested in returning.
Bayern refused
Choosing to return to Bavaria is not a priority for this player or the Dutchman’s former team. Zirkzee has great respect for Bayern, who signed him at the age of 16 as a promising player for Feyenoord. However, this guy’s years in Munich were full of ups and downs and did not end successfully.
Zirkzee was launched by Bayern in December 2019 and launched with a record: the fastest player to score a double in Bundesliga history. However, in 2020 he only played a few matches, until moving to Parma in January 2021.
Since then, Zirkzee has been successful in Belgium as well as Italy, while Bayern selected Harry Kane last summer. This 30-year-old striker still has many opportunities ahead.
Mathys Tel, the 18-year-old Gray Tigers player who arrived from Rennes in 2022, means Bayern have invested in another young striker. For this reason, the Bavarian team can hardly spend 40 million euros to bring Zirkzee back.
Milan’s interest
Milan have put the Dutchman at the top of their list alongside Benjamin Sesko. To get Zirkzee, the Rossoneri must invest at least 40 million euros. Meanwhile, Bologna is making its own calculations, knowing that they have a very valuable asset to try to get as much money as possible.
Firstly, in case of qualifying for the Champions League, the Rossoblu could try to keep Zirkzee for another season. Second, Rasmus Hojlund was sold by Atalanta to Manchester United for about 75 million euros plus 10 million euros in extra fees.
That transfer is being used by the Rossoblu as a reference because Zirkzee is of similar quality and age, he could fetch a similar price. For Bologna, this will be an incredible bargain as the 22-year-old player was bought for just 8.5 million euros.
Zlatan and the big threats
A potential deal is in Milan’s plans, as is the opinion of Stefano Pioli or another coach. Plus the words of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who will have bold ideas alongside Giorgio Furlani, Geoffrey Moncada and Antonio D’Ottavio.
In theory, with Zirkzee, there is a link between the past and the future: Zlatan is one of Joshua’s favorite players and now he is quite similar to the young Ibra in the way he plays.
The big threat comes from the Premier League. English clubs have superior finances and Zirkzee knew that sooner or later he would play football here. His idea may be achieved in a few years, but not everything in life can be predicted.
So keep an eye out for Manchester United, who have made an offer, and Arsenal, who have the right playing style to see Zirkzee play as a number ‘9.5’ rather than a typical striker image.