Chelsea loanee Tiemoue Bakayoko has not played a single competitive minute for AC Milan this season and will likely continue to do so due to the clause in his loan agreement, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport.
The 28-year-old joined Milan on a two-season loan deal from Chelsea in 2021 — a move which he previously described as a dream move.
It has turned out to be not so dreamy in the past 18 months, however.
In the first season since his return, he still managed to make 14 appearances for Milan in the Serie A. This season, none. Neither in the league nor in any cup competition.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the loan agreement between Milan and Chelsea includes an option to buy that becomes an obligation if Bakayoko reaches 15 appearances in which he plays for at least 45 minutes.
Milan reportedly do not have any desire to trigger the clause, hence they have completely frozen him out.
Well, the aforementioned clause is only partly to blame for his being ostracised at San Siro, while the number one culprit is his poor performance.
The report also mentions that the France international does not even train at a high pace as expected.
Since the clause only covers competitive games, Bakayoko actually featured in the friendly match between Milan and Liverpool earlier this month.
He is unlikely to feature for Milan in the second half of the season, however, and the best-case scenario for him is perhaps to exterminate the loan and find another club in January.
This would also apply to Chelsea, who unfortunately might have to deal with the problem of having to find the player another club again this summer.
The Blues actually extended Bakayoko’s contract until summer 2024 before his loan move to Milan, hoping to secure transfer fees from selling the player which, even at the time, was quite optimistic.
So, for now, the Bakayoko saga continues.
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