AC Milan Transfer News: Riccardo Montolivo Saga Ends as Italian Joins Milan

At long last, Riccardo Montolivo is a member of AC Milan.

The 27-year-old midfielder will leave Fiorentina next month when his contract expires and will join the Serie A runners-up, according to the club's official website.

The Montolivo to Milan rumors began early last summer. The Fiorentina captain was entering the final year of his contract and was heavily pursued by Milan and other clubs, but the Rossoneri were the clear favorites to win his signature.

Negotiations regarding a transfer were long and difficult, as Fiorentina kept changing the asking price, which included about $10 million and a player, potentially Antonio Cassano.

Milan's refusal to play the game any longer payed off in the long haul, as now they will get Montolivo for free.

The 2011-12 campaign started off sourly for Montolivo. Knowing of the interest from clubs like Milan, he refused to sign a new contract that would keep him at Fiorentina past June 2012. This resulted in the Italian international being stripped of his captaincy by the club.

Montolivo is one of four Milan players, along with Antonio Cassano, Antonio Nocerino and Ignazio Abate, to be called into Cesare Prandelli's 32-man squad in preparation for UEFA Euro 2012, which for Italy begins on June 10 with a Group Stage match against 2008 champions Spain. The squad will be lowered to 23 players by the beginning of the tournament.

CEO Adriano Galliani has become quite the fan of the Bosman transfer. Last season, he announced the signings of Philippe Mexes and Taye Taiwo for the 2011-12 season before Milan had even clinched the Scudetto.

With the 2011-12 season now over for half a week, Galliani has added two names to the changing Milan roster, with Montolivo being joined by Bakaye Traore on a free transfer after his contract with Nancy expires.

The coming offseason will be an important time for Milan, as Montolivo and Traore cannot be the only additions to the club. Prior to the final match of the season, a 2-1 win over relegated Novara, six players (Alessandro Nesta, Clarence Seedorf, Mark Van Bommel, Gianluca Zambrotta, Gennaro Gattuso and Filippo Inzaghi) announced that the Novara match would be their last with Milan.

The Rossoneri must now work to find replacements, as they may be hard to find in the current squad.