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AC Milan Sporting director Paolo Maldini explains his decision to sign a youngster over Serie A proven Dybala.
AC Milan sporting director and club legend Paolo Maldini has had to defend the signings he made in the wake of their Champions League exit to rivals Inter, and he revealed why they signed Charles de Ketelaere instead of beating Roma to Paulo Dybala.
The legendary defender has been integral in Milan's resurgence, as key intelligent signings which were made in difficult financial situations have seen the Rossoneri become competitive again. Still, Milan's decline this season has seen him come under scrutiny.
What Maldini said
The five-time Champions League winner saw his club crash out of the competition today, following a 3-0 defeat to neighbours Inter over two legs.
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He spoke to Sky after the match, defending their project and using De Ketelaere, who has struggled to settle this season, as an example.
Milan signed the Belgian international from Club Brugge in the summer for a sizable €32 million fee, but he has not hit the ground running, having failed to score in 38 appearances for the club.
Maldini believes the 22-year-old will come good, asking for calm and saying it is typical of a project like theirs which targets youngsters rather than ready-made stars to have situations like that. He cited Tonali as an example of a player who struggled in his first season.
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Maldini believes going after youngsters is the way to go, revealing that they could have gone for a Serie A-proven Dybala before he joined Roma, instead, they opted for the Club Brugge youngster.
“De Ketelaere is an example,” he said, per GetfootballnewsItaly.
“It would have been much easier and much less risky for us to go to for someone like Dybala. Would it have been right for our project? No.
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“We have an idea, we want to build a young team while sometimes taking risks with young people. This was the case for Tonali in the first year and for Charles in this one. But it is the idea of football and investments that we share with the ownership.”
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