Real Madrid has three loaned players this season: Reinier, having a hard time to shine at Girona after two practically zero seasons in Dortmund; White, who barely played in Cádiz, but now in Alavés it does enjoy continuity; and Brahim, who is doing the best so far throughout his third season in a row at Milan. The man from Malaga has six goals and three assists this season and in the Champions League quarterfinals he was vital to his team’s victory against Napoli, unblocking the Milan goal in the first leg with a control-dribble in midfield with which he launched The Backlash. In fact, he was named MVP of the match, despite the fact that he was not the author of the winning goal. He already conquered Serie A last year and this is going for Orejona.
And all this has caused Milanello to start a campaign to try to retain him, despite the fact that the club assumes that everything is in the hands of Real Madrid. Brahim has a contract with the whites until 2025 and his loan ends on June 30, so he must join the white team’s preseason in July, under the orders of Ancelotti or the coach in charge at that time. At the white club they count on him in planning for the next season, they appreciate the evolution he has achieved in Milan over the last three years and they trust that he can contribute in white, starting from a theoretical substitute role, but with options to fight to be in the eleven.
But at Milan they trust that there may be options and this is how they express it from different levels of the club. Starting with Stefano Pioli, the coach, who responded to a question from Mirko Calemme (AS correspondent in Italy): “It is growing a lot and it is clear to everyone. He is a young boy, but he has a lot of personality and he loves having the pressure on him, he knows how to manage it. He is turning into an absolute level footballer. Continue working with him? Of course I would like to.”
It is confirmation of what Frederic Massara, the club’s sports director, already said days ago, openly explaining that when the season ends they will seek a meeting with Madrid to propose an extension of Brahim’s stay in Milan: “Brahim Díaz has done well in recent years, we will sit down with Real Madrid to find the conditions to continue together.” And finally, the opinion of a true legend of the team such as Fabio Capello, the coach with whom Milan won four league titles and a European Cup: “I was wrong about Brahim. I didn’t like him as a player, I thought he wasn’t at Milan’s level. But now it has completely changed, it has improved. Now make a difference.”
Brahim, meanwhile, tries to get out of this situation, despite the fact that it is a common topic of conversation in Milanello these days. “This is not the time to talk about Real Madrid. I am content and happy at Milan, but happier for the team because we deserve it. I am happy with what I am doing, but there is still a lot to do”, explained the footballer after the triumph over Napoli in the Champions League. But he knows very well that his future, at least for now, is white. That, of course, if Madrid manages to make room for him.
Asensio and Hazard condition Brahim
Because a possible space problem can change the situation. Mariano will leave the club for sure, but it remains to be seen what happens with Asensio, the player most similar to Brahim on the squad; If the Spaniard does not continue, it is practically certain that Brahim will take his place at Real Madrid 2023-24. But Madrid’s idea is for the man from Malaga to be part of the project even if Asensio continues, although for this he would need to release the card that Hazard currently occupies.
The Belgian does not count (barely 331 minutes this course) and charges no less than 15 million net per season. Finding a team for him will be very difficult, but at Madrid they will make an effort to do so and hope that he will do his part to make room for a footballer who does have the slightest confidence from the coach. Be it Brahim or a youth squad who waits for his turn, like Sergio Arribas.