Chapter 220: The Man Who Can Help Alonso

When Mallorca announced the transfer of their midfield core, Brazilian Thiago Motta, to FC Barcelona for $25 million, they wasted no time in revealing their next move. Almost immediately, they secured the signing of young Spanish midfielder Xabi Alonso from Real Sociedad for $10 million.

This swift exchange left Mallorca fans with mixed emotions—both excitement and concern.

Mallorca supporters had long accepted the club's transfer philosophy: sell high, buy low. They knew their team wasn't financially powerful enough to replace outgoing stars with players of the same value. If they could, then why sell in the first place?

The media praised Mallorca for another smart piece of business. While Alonso was slightly older than Motta, he was still a promising young player with potential. However, many analysts pointed out a key issue—while Alonso might have similar potential to Motta, he wasn't at the level where he could immediately fill the void left by the Brazilian. Role players could be replaced easily, but replacing a midfield general was far more difficult. The same concern applied to the forward line—replacing Luke with Fernando Torres presented a similar challenge.

José shared the same concerns. However, he was confident that Torres and Didier Drogba could compensate for Luke's departure in attack. The real issue lay in midfield. Relying solely on Alonso to orchestrate play from deep was unrealistic. At the same time, José was unwilling to abandon the tactical system he had carefully built—where the midfield core dictated the tempo from deep, while the attacking midfielders focused on breaking through the opposition. He needed to find a mentor for Alonso. Someone who could guide him and provide immediate stability to Mallorca's midfield.

That was why, as soon as Mallorca finalized their two transfer moves, José flew to Italy—his destination: Milan.

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José had previously dealt with Adriano Galliani during Kakha Kaladze's transfer negotiations. So when he arrived in Milan, even though the club's owner, Silvio Berlusconi, didn't personally meet him, Galliani warmly welcomed him.

"Mr. Galliani, thank you for your hospitality," José said with a smile. "I assume you've heard the news? Today, we officially sold our midfield core, Motta, to Barcelona."

Galliani returned the smile. "Yes, what a shame... I was actually considering bringing that young lad to AC Milan. I believe he has Italian nationality? If the Brazilian national team doesn't want him, perhaps he could join our Italian squad instead."

José paused for a moment. He vaguely recalled that, in the future, Motta did indeed switch his allegiance to Italy. However, he decided not to dwell on that topic and shrugged. "If Milan had wanted him, I would've gladly sold him to you. But you already have Andrea Pirlo. Moving a natural attacking midfielder into a deep-lying playmaker role was a stroke of genius by Carlo Ancelotti."

Galliani grinned with satisfaction. Milan had taken a discarded attacking midfielder from their city rivals, Inter Milan, and turned him into one of the best deep-lying playmakers in the game. This transformation made the club immensely proud.

"Pirlo is an outstanding player. I believe both Milan and the Italian national team won't have to worry about their midfield for years to come. His time as an attacking midfielder honed his technique, making him even more composed as a deep-lying playmaker. And from that deeper position, he becomes harder to mark," Galliani said. "It's a tactical innovation that I truly admire about Italian coaching. When I was studying for my professional coaching license, I borrowed many ideas from Italy's top managers. My only regret is that I never had the chance to study in Italy directly. I don't know if I'll ever get the opportunity."

"If you ever want to study in Italy, I'd be happy to arrange something for you," Galliani said enthusiastically. Talking with José was quite enjoyable.

Their conversation shifted to various stories about Italian football. José, with his extensive reading and sharp communication skills, kept the discussion engaging. He frequently asked about small details, showing his genuine curiosity about Italy's football culture. Since they were discussing past events, Galliani had no reservations in sharing his insights. Everyone liked to play the role of a mentor, and with José now a well-known coach, Galliani was more than happy to indulge in a little storytelling.

Eventually, the discussion turned to Roberto Baggio. José sighed. "I remember when Alessandro Del Piero was rising, Luciano Moggi famously said: 'We already have Del Piero, why do we need Baggio?' From a club's perspective, when a young talent emerges who can replace a superstar, selling the veteran to save money and create space for the youngster becomes inevitable. If the veteran is already aging, phasing them out gradually is the most reasonable approach. But in reality, can any club truly execute this transition perfectly?"

Galliani froze for a moment. He was a shrewd man, quick to catch the underlying message. José was referencing the old Baggio-Del Piero situation, but wasn't AC Milan facing a similar dilemma right now with Pirlo and Demetrio Albertini?

When Del Piero first broke through, Baggio was still a superstar at Juventus. But because of Del Piero's rise, Juventus chose to part ways with Baggio. Now, Pirlo's brilliant performances had left Albertini without a place at Milan. And keeping a player like Albertini on the bench was a waste. Role players could be rotated, but a midfield general needed continuity—otherwise, swapping them in and out disrupted the entire team's rhythm.

Selling Albertini was already a consensus within Milan's management. However, finding a buyer wasn't easy. Elite clubs weren't interested in making him their midfield general at his age, while mid-tier clubs couldn't afford his wages. And Albertini himself was unwilling to move to a lesser team.

Though he knew he was on the verge of being forced out of the club where he had spent his entire career, Albertini didn't beg to stay, nor did he actively seek out other clubs. Instead, he simply waited—waiting for Milan to give him an answer.

For Milan, this was a headache. The club prided itself on its reputation for treating players with respect. Simply terminating Albertini's contract would damage their image. But keeping him was also problematic—his annual salary of $2.6 million (which doubled to $5.2 million after taxes) was a heavy financial burden, even for Milan.

Releasing him wasn't an option. Keeping him wasn't feasible. The only solution was to find a buyer—which was easier said than done. But now, here was José, dropping hints about the situation.

Mallorca suddenly seemed like a great destination.

They weren't a traditional powerhouse, but they had built a strong reputation and performed well in recent seasons. They had enough financial stability to handle Albertini's wages. And maintaining a good relationship with Mallorca could have future benefits.

With this in mind, Galliani's enthusiasm in the conversation grew. Steering the discussion toward Albertini, he began selling the idea to José. Fortunately, José had come to Milan precisely for Albertini. It didn't take long for both sides to reach an understanding.

"Albertini is one of our homegrown stars. We never intended to sell him... but as you know, a team doesn't need two players in the same role. Pirlo and Albertini both excel in deep-lying playmaker roles. We don't want to waste one of them—it wouldn't be fair to the player," Galliani said. "I imagine you need someone experienced to guide Alonso, just like Albertini helped Andrea last season. And I believe Albertini would love to experience Spanish football."

José simply smiled and nodded as Galliani spoke. When the Milan executive had almost exhausted his pitch, José finally shrugged. "I'm definitely interested in Albertini... but, Mr. Galliani, we can't afford his wages."

Before Galliani could respond, José continued, "Our highest salary is $1.5 million. I know Albertini is worth more than $2 million, but I can't allow a single player to break our wage structure. That would create long-term problems for the club."

Galliani sighed. He realized what José was getting at—Mallorca wouldn't take Albertini unless Milan covered a large portion of his wages.

Negotiations followed, and they eventually reached a deal: Mallorca would take Albertini on a one-year loan for a $1 million fee. Milan would cover $1.6 million of his salary, while Mallorca paid the remaining $1 million.

To José's surprise, Albertini didn't resist the move at all. He quietly signed the loan contract and simply sent a message through his agent: he would report to Mallorca's preseason training as scheduled.

"Was it because he was heartbroken?" José wondered on his flight back to Spain.