"German Transfer Market Network" recently calculated Serie A's transfer investment in the past 10 years. AC Milan's total expenditure was 1.04 billion euros, and its net investment was as high as 647 million euros, ranking first among the 20 Serie A teams this season. . Although the investment in the Li Yonghong era accounted for the majority, the team's inability to renew contracts and too many players leaving the team on free agency were the main reasons.

This ranking published by Dezhuan counts the transfer investment details of 20 Serie A teams from the summer of 2014 to the present. Milan's total expenditure on buying people is 1.04 billion euros, and the total revenue from selling people is 393 million euros, with a net investment of 647.2 million euros. Euros rank first among all teams, which means that the amount they spend in the transfer market far exceeds the transfer fees received.

Eight clubs have achieved profits in the transfer market, among which Atlanta, Udinese, Genoa, Verona and Empoli all have net income of more than 100 million euros. Take Atlanta as an example. They invested 78.2 million euros in the summer window last year to sign Scamacca and other strong players, but they also made back 153 million euros by selling players such as Hoylen and Demiral.

Juventus' total investment in the past 10 years reached 1.65 billion euros, ranking first in Serie A, but their net investment was only 483.1 million euros, 160 million euros less than Milan. Taking this season as an example, although Juventus spent 92.7 million euros to sign Douglas Luiz, Thuram Jr., etc., it also earned 91 million euros by selling Sule, Huizen, Keane Jr., etc., which almost reached break even.

Inter Milan's total expenditure was 1.07 billion euros, which was also more than Milan's investment, but their net investment was only 241.3 million euros, 406 million euros less than their city rivals. Among them, in the 21/22 season, they made a net profit of 163 million euros by cashing out Lukaku, Achraf, and Politano. They sold Onana, Pinamonti, Ronaldo, and Gosens in the summer window last year. They made a net profit of 59.07 million euros.

For Milan, excessive net investment in the past 10 years is definitely related to the Li Yonghong era. After Li Ge took charge of the Rossoneri in 2017, his net investment in the transfer market was as high as 169.5 million euros. However, he failed to achieve the results he expected. Milan only finished sixth in the league that year.

There are many reasons why Milan's net investment in the transfer market is too high. Among them, there are many cases of low-quality signings and being "stuck". Li Ge spent 38 million euros when he signed Andre Silva. After years of loan, he only sold Frankfurt for 3 million euros. Caldara, who was introduced for 37.7 million euros, was not accustomed to the local environment, and it was not until this summer window that his contract expired and he was successfully sold.

Of course, the most important reason is that they lost too many high-priced players who left the team free agency when their contracts expired, and the club was unable to resell them in time to recover costs or earn profits. Donnarumma, Kessie, Romagnoli and Calhanoglu have left the team on free agency. Based on their worth when they left the team, their total market value is about 162 million euros.

In recent seasons, Milan has begun to focus on a sustainable development strategy, and its revenue and expenditure situation in the transfer market has improved. In the 23/24 season, although 121 million euros were spent to sign 10 new players, 71.7 million euros were recovered through the sale of Tonali and other players. So far this season, the transfer cost is 71.7 million euros, the transfer profit is 31.8 million euros, and the net investment is 39.9 million euros, which is lower than Inter Milan's 51.2 million euros.