Serie A Daily Report - 2026-06-18

AC Milan are moving into a new era with Ruben Amorim set to take over as head coach, replacing Massimiliano Allegri after a disappointing fifth-place finish in Serie A last season. Reports say Amorim has agreed a two-year contract with an option for a third year, and the Rossoneri are already bracing for a major squad rethink.

The scale of the rebuild is clear from the list of unsettled players around the club, with Rafael Leao, Luka Modric and Adrien Rabiot among nine names whose futures are unresolved. That uncertainty matters because Milan missed out on Champions League qualification despite spending much of the campaign near the top of the table, so the summer window could define whether the club stabilises or slides further behind Italy's elite.

Samuel Chukwueze's future at AC Milan is in doubt after Fulham chose not to trigger the €26 million purchase option in his loan agreement. The Nigerian winger is back at San Siro after a Premier League spell that produced three goals and four assists, but Milan are reportedly viewing him as one of their most sellable assets this summer.

For a club already managing a crowded list of uncertain cases, any sale of Chukwueze would be about more than balance-sheet housekeeping. It would free up wages and create room for Amorim's reshaping of the squad, while also underlining how aggressively Milan may need to trade before they can rebuild.

Sergi Roberto has become a free agent after Como 1907 allowed his two-year contract to expire. The 34-year-old Spaniard joined the Serie A club in August 2024 after leaving Barcelona, but no new move has been announced following the end of his Italian spell.

The departure closes a short chapter for Como and removes one of the more experienced midfield options from the league's lower half. For a club still trying to establish itself in Serie A, losing a player with Roberto's pedigree may not be catastrophic, but it does leave another vacancy for the summer market to solve.

Italy's failure to reach the 2026 World Cup has become the latest painful marker of decline for a four-time champion. The Azzurri missed 2018, then 2022 after winning Euro 2020, and now have also fallen short for 2026 despite FIFA's expanded 48-team format and extra European places.

The latest blow came in Zenica, where Italy drew 1-1 with Bosnia and Herzegovina in the play-off. That result underlines that this is no longer a one-off collapse but a structural problem for Italian football, with the national team repeatedly failing to convert its talent into qualification when it matters most.

Tijjani Reijnders remains a notable Serie A talking point after leaving AC Milan for Manchester City in a deal worth £46.5 million last summer. The Dutch midfielder made an immediate impact in England with a goal and an assist on his Premier League debut against Wolves, but his role later faded as he started only nine of City's final 20 league matches under Pep Guardiola.

The lingering interest from Italian clubs shows his reputation in Serie A has not diminished, even after the move to the Premier League. For Milan, the discussion is especially relevant because it highlights how quickly elite midfielders can become cross-border assets, and how difficult it is to replace them once they leave San Siro.

Maduka Okoye, the Udinese goalkeeper, is drawing attention well beyond Serie A after a wave of social-media interest made him a breakout name off the pitch. The Nigerian shot-stopper has also been discussing his footballing idols, naming Marc-André ter Stegen, Thibaut Courtois and Gianluigi Donnarumma as the world's top three keepers, while saying Donnarumma is currently operating above everyone else.

That combination of visibility and confidence keeps Okoye in the conversation as one of the more recognisable Serie A goalkeepers. For Udinese, the attention is a reminder that even players outside the title race can shape the league's wider profile when their performances - and personality - travel far beyond Italy.

Everton academy midfielder Demi Akarakiri is reportedly close to a move to Serie A side Cagliari, with the 17-year-old expected to undergo a medical. The young central midfielder split the 2025-26 season between Everton's U18s, where he made 12 appearances, and the U21s, where he added 10 more.

For Cagliari, the potential signing fits a familiar Serie A strategy of betting early on academy talent before the price rises. For Everton, it is another sign that promising teenagers can be lured abroad when a pathway to senior football looks clearer elsewhere.