Secrets and Whispers: AC Milan register interest in Italy international Alia Guagni

It’s no secret that we here at The Offside like Alia Guagni. She is the one, non-Milan player, that we have written about the most.

And now, we might not have to admire her from afar for much longer.

According to Luca Bendoni and a few other sources, there is a chance that Alia might join AC Milan.

The fullback recently left her former team, Atlético Madrid, after playing for them for shortly over one year. Now, Guagni is reportedly back in Italy and is entertaining offers from both Milan and our persnickety cousins, Inter Milan.

Inter are currently managed by Rita Guarino, the confident and capable coach who won many titles with Juventus before heading to the Nerazzurre. Guarino is said to be pushing hard for the fullback, as she knows what she’s capable of. Milan are said to have the advantage in this race though and are more likely to land the Italy international.

Guagni is an experienced player who has played at the highest level and who has a wide array of weapons in their arsenal. The defender is fast, reads play well, has a good sense of positioning and awareness, times their headers well; is an excellent crosser of the ball, and is also not afraid to go forward and score goals.

She has also made Milan her victim a few times, including in the first leg of their Coppa Italia qualifiers in February of 2020. The former captain scored the game-winning goal for her former club, Fiorentina, in that match (albeit an offside one).

Overall, the defender has scored 68 goals and has registered 17 assists (InStat). So, she’s not only a strong defender but also adds potency to an attack.

Guagni is also a native of Florence and is a Florentinian through and through. So, naturally, of course, you’d think that she’d want to return home to la Viola, right? Well, she would if she could. Fiorentina’s general manager, Joe Barone, is said to be blocking her return to the team (Tutto Calcio Femminile).

Hence why she’s now deliberating between playing for the two Milan sides as she returns to Italy.

We won’t know what Guagni’s decision will be until next year, as she’s taking time off to enjoy the New Year’s holiday like the rest of us.

In the meanwhile, if you need to be convinced of the defender’s greatness, here are a few gifs of her being awesome:

Here’s Alia keeping pace with Lieke Martens, a treble-winner and a Ballon d’Or nominee, during the quarterfinal match between Atlético Madrid and Barcelona back in 2020

And here’s Alia making a perfectly timed tackle on Brazilian forward, Ludmila. A year after this happened, the two of them would become teammates at Atlético Madrid.

And here’s her keeping pace with Australian fullback, Ellie Carpenter, and badgering her off the ball. Carpenter is currently the starting right-back for Olympique Lyon, who are the most successful women’s team in the history of football.

If Guagni is good enough to stop all three of them, then she’s good enough to play for Milan.

So, let’s just hope that she trades the white and red of las Colchoneras for the red and black of Milan and will be suiting up for us in the new year.