The coach was instrumental in keeping the goalkeeper at the club last summer, and Maignan now has nothing but praise for him, fitness coach Filippi, and the Rossoneri environment. Will that be enough to get him to sign?

When asked directly about a month and a half ago, Max Allegri flatly denied it: “I definitely wasn’t the one who convinced Maignan to stay. It’s all thanks to Claudio Filippi, who is one of the best goalkeeper coaches around. And then the club, which really wanted to keep him.” It was after the match against Roma, and the air was still buzzing with excitement after Dybala’s penalty was saved. But we are sure that if the miracle of Mike’s renewal were to happen, Allegri would continue to distance himself from it. And yet.

However, just as the Rossoneri coach had played a crucial role in the Frenchman’s decision to stay in the summer, it is reasonable to think that he is now working behind the scenes to at least reopen the dialogue, eliminating Mike’s initial “no.” Nothing particularly insistent, mind you: a sensible coach talks to his players mainly about football, tactics, and motivation, but behind the scenes, Max is somehow trying to facilitate a process that was and remains very difficult. Allegri occupies a fundamental position in this context because the goalkeeper’s dialogue with the management, quite simply, could no longer be defined as such. Frozen out (to put it mildly) by Maignan after an initial proposal from Via Aldo Rossi, which was then revised downwards some time later, a situation clearly not welcomed by the player. Who, it is worth remembering, had said yes to Chelsea in the summer. If it had been up to him, he would now be wearing a blue shirt. The deal did not go through because the two clubs could not agree on the transfer fee, and then Allegri himself intervened to secure the captain.
Mike with the armband was a legacy that Allegri found upon his arrival and was careful not to change. Maignan proudly retained his rank, making a sort of pact with the coach and the club: they would move forward together in the name of their common goal, with the utmost seriousness, regardless of his expiring contract. Knowing Mike’s professional seriousness, this pact reassured Milan from a sporting point of view. But at the same time, it was also a sort of tacit agreement on a free transfer that seemed inevitable. Then the Frenchman started working with Filippi (formerly at Juve with Allegri), getting on very well, and throughout the season he was able to appreciate the overall improvements compared to last season’s misfortunes. All this led him to say the following on the eve of the Super Cup against Napoli: “This year we are more of a team, more of a family, a group where we enjoy ourselves. Many things have changed, the coach and his staff have brought serenity.” And then, again, on Filippi: “He has a lot of experience, he’s cool-headed, he knows how to manage a group of goalkeepers. Working with people like that is much easier. I don’t want to make comparisons, but I feel very good about what he offers me in training, how he manages my character and my things. I’m happy, I hope it continues like this throughout the season.”

details—  They may seem like anything but platitudes. Especially since Maignan is not one for empty pleasantries. In short, while Tare remains understandably cautious (“He likes being at Milan and Milan likes Mike renewing. We are talking”), paradoxically, it is the Frenchman himself who paints a very positive picture of his season and his excellent relationship with the coach and goalkeeping coach. These are not insignificant details. Milan, for its part, has returned to its original renewal proposal. The basic feeling is that the situation remains very complex, but perhaps not as impractical as it was a few months ago. Meanwhile, Allegri is working behind the scenes, discreetly, not least because January is approaching. And January can be a very dangerous month for a club that has a player whose contract is expiring.