Rossoneri Round-up for 14 October: Maldini said he & Leonardo had a deal for his return ‘within 48 hours’

Paolo Maldini spoke at length about his time at the club as a player and about his return to the club and what he and Leonardo are trying to accomplish on the sporting side of the management group of Milan.

Among other things, he revealed that Champions League qualification is their goal right now at Milan, although he said it would be difficult, and that after he was called by Leonardo about a return to the club, they had a deal within 48 hours.

Leonardo called me, I was on vacation and he said that he’d been contacted by the club.

We reached an agreement in 48 hours. We divide the sporting area, which means dealing with the team, players and Coach. It’s an intense job and certainly not easy.

Based on our experience, we try to return to those principles. At Milan, you must have clear in your mind that it’s essential to win trophies.

Our objective now is to get back to being competitive in Europe as soon as possible. We have a three-year contract, so it’s not much time, but we’ll try. I won’t deny that it’s tough to talk about Champions League qualification, considering recent results, but we are convinced we can do it. That is our main target.

It was important for us to feel that there was a strong club by our side as players, so it must be the same for the current group.

When Maldini speaks, Milan fans listen. We can be unsure of a lot of things about the new owners and the project that they have started, but if Leonardo and Maldini are convinced, then we’re all convinced, right?

On to the links.

AC Milan and Italian Football Links

Milan are reportedly interested in Ajax centre back Matthijs de Ligt. [AC Milan Offside]

At least one Fiorentina fan thinks that Giovanni Simeone isn’t scoring enough. [Viola Nation]

Roberto Mancini insists that the UEFA Nations League was never a priority for Italy. [Football-Italia.net]

World Football Links

Maradona’s Dorados de Sinaloa defeated Club Tijuana in a friendly match. [FMF State of Mind]

Aaron Ramsey thought there was a deal for him to remain at Arsenal, but now it’s gone. [The Short Fuse]

Houston Dynamo survived a bonkers rain delay in LA, but couldn’t survive Carlos Vela, as Los Angeles Football Club won 4-2 at home. [Dynamo Theory]

Former Leeds United, and current Burnley, striker Chris Wood is fighting for equality for women’s football. [Yorkshire Evening Post]

D.C. United beat FC Dallas to leap into a playoff spot. [Black & Red United]