Mattia Caldara has no future at Milan, but the club efforts to offload their fringe defender have yet to come to fruition. As per TuttoSport (via MilanLive), Torino have taken the centre-back into consideration but demand some assurances before launching a bid.
Caldara has flopped at the San Siro since arriving as part of a package to send Leonardo Bonucci back to Juventus in summer 2018. A series of injury setbacks have hampered the 27-year-old’s momentum at Milan, restricting his game time to just 155 minutes in all competitions.
In a bid to get his career back on track, the Rossoneri shipped Caldara out on a season-long loan at Atalanta last season. However, the move did no good to the defender’s resurgence as he made a mere nine appearances across all competitions for La Dea in 2020/21.
It’s not surprising that Atalanta opted against turning Caldara’s deal permanent this summer. Despite coming back to base and feating in Milan’s friendly match against OGC Nice on Saturday, the Italian centre-back is unlikely to remain in Lombardy beyond the summer.
Stefano Pioli’s squad is well-stocked at the back, with Alessio Romagnoli, Simon Kjaer, and Fikayo Tomori competing for places. Therefore, Pioli has deemed Caldara surplus to requirements and wants to either sell him outright or send him out on another loan.
Torino remain the only side to genuinely consider the prospect of hiring Caldara, who has caught the eye of the new boss Ivan Juric. The Croat is confident the Atalanta youth academy graduate could be a hit in Turin as long as he manages to maintain his fitness.
So, Il Toro want reassurances on the player’s physical situation before making a bid. It’s not strange Torino are keen to make sure Caldara has overcome his injury setbacks, considering his extensive medical record.