Alessio Cerci Sent to AC Milan on Loan
AC Milan and Atletico Madrid did their best switcheroo with their players to start the January transfer window. Milan agreed to send Fernando Torres back to the Vincente Calderon on a loan after making the loan between Milan and Chelsea permanent. Atletico Madrid did Milan a favor by sending a striker of their own, Alessio Cerci.
Cerci only started in two matches during the 2014-15 time frame. The Italian international player started on November 18 against Albania in an international friendly. On December 3, Cerci started for Atletico Madrid for the first time in their Copa del Rey match with Hospitalet. Along with playing as a substitute for the La Liga squad six times this season, Cerci was used as a sub in Italy’s group stage match against Costa Rica. He has served as a substitute for Atletico in the Champions League on two separate occasions, scoring his only goal of the 2014-15 campaign against Malmo FF on November 4th. He also suffered a red card on October 4th against Valencia.
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Cerci was signed from Torino this past summer after a strong season for the Italian club. Cerci started 35 Serie A matches along with being subbed into three more (two in Serie A, one in the Coppa Italia). For Torino, Cerci hit the back of the net 13 times while assisting on 10 other goals. That year, he also started twice for Italy and served as a sub on nine occasions, including once for a Confederations Cup match and once for a World Cup Qualifier.
Cerci brings a much better striking presence to AC Milan than Torres did. Cerci could easily fit into a winger role and Milan will certainly receive a boost with the chemistry between him and another Italy striker, Stephan El Shaarawy. Stephan recently had a great game against Real Madrid in their holiday friendly and will look to start to turn things around. Cerci could be a perfect catalyst for that with Jeremy Menez sandwiched in the middle.
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Torres never truly fit in with the Rossoneri and injuries, plus lack of form crippled his tenure in Milan. Anytime you add an Italian player to a club with various other Italian players, it usually bodes well for the team in the chemistry department. Cerci’s loan grants his services to Milan through the 2015-16 season and can surely grow into his own with the red and black at just 27 years old. Milan is locked into a dogfight for a few European competitions in Serie A and Cerci is a great way to adjust the team as the transfer window continues.