The Italy international looks ready to join the Bianconeri with a free transfer, but they pulled out of the game for financial reasons and are now paying the price
On Wednesday night, while Jenluigi Donnarumma was sitting on a bench in Bruges, Mike Magnan pounced on Mohammed Salah's penalty at Anfield.
No one lost the irony, especially all the supporters of AC Milan.
In fact, those distressed about Donnarumma's departure in the summer are reveling in the fact that McIon already looks like a worthy substitute and is now forced to play Keller Navas' second violinist at Paris Saint-Germain.
As one Rossoneri tweeted: "Menion has saved more Champions League penalties this season than Donnarumma!" ”
Still, losing Donaruma for no reason was a heavy blow for Milan.
When he completed his free transfer to Paris Saint-Germain on July 15, his value had never been higher. Just four days ago, Italy's first place was named the best player at Euro 2020.
If he had been in contract at the time, Milan would have made millions of dollars from Donnarumma — but he didn't.
The parties failed to agree on the terms of the new contract.
Despite a more sensible and prudent approach financially, Milan offered the 22-year-old a 25% raise, which would net him €8 million (£6.8 million/$9.4 million) a season; considering his age, talent and the role he played in helping the Rossoneri return to the Champions League, it was enough in the eyes of the club.
However, Donnarumma prefers to sign a five-year contract with Paris Saint-Germain, which, according to L'Equipe, guarantees a net salary of €7 million (£6 million/$8.2 million) and could rise to €10 million (£8.5 million/$11.7 million) with bonuses and add-ons per year.
No one at Milan has said their academy products are bad, at least not publicly. Instead, they wanted him to say goodbye affectionately.
Fans were angry, though. The 'Dollarumma' nickname is back.
Milan's supporters have long been unhappy with Donnarumma's refusal to hand over his long-term future to the club that nurtured him, blaming agent Mino Rayola.
Some super players even went to Milan's training pitch before the end of last season to try to persuade him to stay, urging him to become a club legend like Paulo Maldini or Roma icon Francisco Totti.
Donnarumma ended the makeshift meeting in tears, but he eventually left in August, saying he and the club "have different ambitions".
Joining Paris Saint-Germain undoubtedly means a challenge to the Champions League, and Milan are delighted to be back in the Champions League.
However, the first game brought very different emotions to both sides.
Paris Saint-Germain scored a point at Club Brugge but were condemned for their uninspired performances, with Lionel Messi, Neymar and Killian Mbappe failing to click.
However, Milan returned in an exciting game, pushing Liverpool all the way through a thrilling match at Anfield.
The Rossoneri were second for a long time, but reversed the game with a fast-throwing doubles before halftime and applied pressure at the end to a 3-2 defeat.
For Stefano Pioli, there are certainly a lot of positives that could get him out of the game, the most important of which is Maignan, who has been dubbed the "magician" by some parts of the Italian media.
In addition to rejecting Salah at a time when Milan were already trailing 1-0 and in danger of being overwhelmed, he made five other saves.
"He kept Diavolo alive," said the Milan sports newspaper enthusiastically. "He showed consistently solid performances with precision on his feet. He commanded the defense with a ferocious focus.
'For now, given his efficiency and consistency, he's Milan's best signing of the summer.
Again, it's still too early, but the France international, who helped Lille win the Ligue 1 title for €13 million (£11.1 million/$15.2 million) last season, looks like another great deal for Milan's technical director Maldini.
Would the Rossoneri prefer to keep native hero Donnarumma? There is no doubt about it, but Milan are not worried about their preferred goalkeeper right now.
Not so with Sunday's rival Juventus.
The night before Milan and Paris Saint-Germain began their respective Champions League journeys, the Bianconeri won comfortably 3-0 in Malmö.
It was an encouraging and much-needed victory for Juve, who scored just one Serie A point in the first three of Maximiliano Allegri's second game in Turin.
The returning coach was particularly pleased with his side's defensive performance in Sweden, but it shows that this is not just Juve's first goal-free of the season; it's the first time they've played in any tournament since March 2.
Now, the Bianconeri are clearly a few issues to be resolved in the back, but Vojceh Szczesny is undoubtedly the main problem.
After initially brilliantly succeeding legendary Gigi Buffon as Juve's first place, the Poles are now under enormous pressure after a series of costly mistakes.
Last season, doubts became about his ability to handle long-range shots, not least because he failed to block Sergio Oliveira's long-range free-kick in the Champions League round of 16 loss to Porto.
Meanwhile, in his first weekend of the season against Udinese, he drew 2-2 with Udinese, who awarded a penalty after a docile shot from Tolgay Arslan before Gerard Deulofeu equalised from a botched breakout.
Allegri was quick to express his support for Szczesny, telling reporters: "He was a fantastic goalkeeper. It's not a matter of technical or technical error, it's a matter of understanding the moment, and there's nothing shameful about passing the ball into the stands. ”
However, Szczesni's suspension was again questioned last weekend, with the former Arsenal player failing to catch Lorenzo Insigne's curling shot – or at least keeping it in safe place. When Napoli turned a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 victory, Matteo Politano grabbed the loose ball.
So, Tuesday's zero goal conceded in Sweden couldn't have been better for Szczesny, but in fact Malmö did little for him. Milan completely represents a very different proposition.
The Rossoneri started their Serie A season off to a strong start and are currently second with a 100% record, with only a goal difference from leader Roma.
Given its importance to participants on both sides, for very different reasons, Sunday's showdown in Turin would have been a massive match anyway, and even before Raiola stirred things up in an interview with RAI Sport on Friday, he tried to use Donnaruma to make Milan and Juve feel bad about themselves.
"I'm disappointed with Gio's treatment," the agent said, alluding to criticism of Donnarumma for his exit from Milan. "He made his life choice. No one is betrayed. He could have left four years ago, but he didn't. ”
Raiola then confirmed Juve's ability to sign Donnarumma, adding: "I think they still feel very sorry for not getting him. ”
Although this must be annoying for them, many Juve fans will reluctantly agree with Laiola.
However, it is worth noting that the news from Laiola came on the same day that Juve announced a record club loss of €210 million (£180 million/$246 million) for the 2020-21 season, which conveniently explains why Juve believe they will no longer be able to meet Donnarumma's salary requirements.
As Juve football director Federico Cherubini told Tuttosport, "We already have a goalkeeper on a long-term contract (until 2024) that we still believe in.
"Since we're making the decision [to balance the accounts], it doesn't make sense to do what PSG did [the Donnarumma deal].