In the final hours of the transfer window, Milan finally let Luka Jovic wear down their resistance and has arrived to complete his move from Fiorentina.
For months the recurring theme of the summer has seen reports that Jovic’s agents proposed the striker to Milan, with little or no enthusiasm for the idea from the Rossoneri.
That changed on transfer deadline day when their other options all faltered, the most recent over the last 24 hours being FC Porto hitman Medhi Taremi, Leicester City forward Patson Daka and Rafa Mir of Sevilla.
All of those would’ve cost at least €15m between loans and options to buy, but with the clock ticking down, Milan finally turned to the easiest and cheapest alternative who had been waiting all along.
Jovic has not played for Fiorentina in pre-season, as he is not part of coach Vincenzo Italiano’s plans after one season where he scored 13 goals and provided five assists in 50 competitive games.
The 25-year-old Serbian’s career has gone into a downward spiral since Real Madrid paid €63m to Eintracht Frankfurt in 2019.
He was effectively handed to Fiorentina for free last summer, retaining only a 50 per cent cut of the sell-on fee, and now joins Milan on loan for free.