AC Milan sign their alternative to Joshua Zirkzee, he once almost signed for Man United as well

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The transfer market never works in isolation as it is a game of dominos, where one falls and causes the others to fall as well.

Manchester United have been on the end of this in the past and felt the brunt of it this summer as well, as Amadou Onana’s move to Aston Villa probably scuppered any chance of landing Jarrad Branthwaite at a reasonable price.

Similarly, United’s signing of Joshua Zirkzee was going to leave their rivals for his signature scrambling for an alternative, AC Milan in this case.

Milan were dealt a huge blow when Zirkzee chose United because at one point, they were actually favourites for his signature.

Director Zlatan Ibrahimovic then said they had pulled out of the race and were already looking at replacements, who has now arrived. Funnily enough, he almost signed for United as well!

Milan’s Joshua Zirkzee replacement

Milan moved quickly to pivot from their failure to land ZIrkzee and got their hands on a more proven striker, albeit with a different skill set.

Coming on the back of a successful Euros campaign, Milan are set to sign Spanish striker Alvaro Morata, who has somewhat of a history with United, to put it briefly.

In a deal that Milan would undoubtedly be happy with, he’s the striker that even United could have done with if they wanted to add experience to a young front line.

Morata famously came extremely close to joining United under Jose Mourinho, before the club pivoted to Romelu Lukaku instead, leaving Morata for Chelsea.

The striker has been a dependable option throughout his career and his developed his game into that of an all-round talent.

While he is more of a natural striker than Zirkzee, who’s effectively a playmaker in a striker’s body, it was a no-brainer move to sign him if he was available for less than £11 million.

United continue striker search

Despite signing Zirkzee, reports have indicated that United want to add more to their ranks, especially as Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund are both young, and the former especially beginning his first season in England.

They have been linked to the likes of Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Ivan Toney, both solid options but would command a high fee and likely demand a starting berth.

In such a situation, they could have spent about £10 million on Morata, who is the jack of all trades in the striking department and would have helped the young pair’s development too.

For now, it is clear United are prioritising other positions, with an extra striker being a luxury, not a necessity, hence their refusal to engage in talks for Morata.

The domino has fallen and it is now up to Zirkzee to ensure that United have got the better end of the deal when all is said and done.