Moncada: “We could have taken Vinicius and Bellingham but Real Madrid were there”

December 22 – 4.28pm – MILANO

In the long document drawn up on Milan by the Harvard Business School, in addition to the words of Cardinale and Furlani, there is also a part dedicated to the market. Speaking is Geoffrey Moncada, Milan's technical director, specialized in scouting. “We tried to sign Vinicius Jr. when he was 17 years old and Jude Bellingham when he was 20, but we couldn't compete with Real Madrid,” said Moncada. “We have to accept it. In recent years we have brought great players to the club, and As a former scout I see the goal of taking underrated players and making them perform at the highest level as a personal challenge.”

the technical director

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Moncada then spoke about his role: “The technical director is the link between the coach, the players and the rest of the sporting side on the one hand and the commercial side on the other – said Moncada -. I respond to Furlani and talk to him every day, several times a day. How are the players doing? What contracts do we need to change in the medical department or in the youth sector? scouts who work with us: there are five in Italy and five abroad, and we have people who analyze the data at Casa Milan who help us find players.”

moneyball

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Moncada then commented on the contacts with Billy Beane, the creator of Moneyball: “He asks us questions, gives us ideas and helps us find good players with data from Zelus (player data analysis company, ed.) but the decision final on a player is never based only on numbers”. Finally, the explanation of the ideal profiles for the Devil, using Reijnders as an example: “We are taking calculated risks with young players rather than buying big names with high salaries. Maybe you won't have immediate success this way, but build for the long term. Reijnders played in the Dutch league and we were the only ones to bet on him. You ask: he's a great player, why doesn't anyone want him? And now he's a starter for us and plays for his national team “.

Scaroni

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The words of president Scaroni could not be missed, commenting on Furlani's role: “When you work for an investment company your job is to look at the numbers. When you work as CEO in a club like Milan, your job is to look at the people. Your first duty when you run an organization is to motivate people. And you don't learn that by being an investment banker. So it's a tough learning curve for Furlani, but he's a very smart guy.”

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stefanelli

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There is also room for Riccardo Stefanelli, member of the AC Milan Board of Directors: “Making the most passionate fans understand how important it is for us to create value in five or ten years instead of trying to win the Serie A title straight away. It's a great challenge. Our fans are not very convinced of this type of process.” Then on the new stadium: “It would allow us to take an event like a 90-minute match and transform it into a place to spend four or five hours. If we limit our business to the approximately 40 euros that fans pay on average for the ticket, we won't grow. We need places where they can eat and drink, where they can buy merchandise, and we need to have adequate corporate hospitality areas. Plus, we need a stadium that lives 300 days a year.”