Alessio Cerci to AC Milan: Latest Loan Details, Reaction and More

AC Milan have confirmed the signing of Atletico Madrid's Alessio Cerci on an 18-month loan, per the team's official Twitter feed on Friday:

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AC Milan had already confirmed that he was to join Milan on Twitter, insisting that he “cannot wait” to get started. He revealed the news in Italian on his own account, the translation of which can also be seen below courtesy of Bleacher Report UK:

The 27-year-old forward will join the Rossoneri from Atletico Madrid on a temporary basis, with Fernando Torres moving the other direction for the same length of time. The move will see Cerci leave the Spanish champions just four months after his summer move from Torino.

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As noted by BT Sport’s Italian football expert James Horncastle, the winger is a player that is ideally suited to Serie A:

Cerci will join a Milan side that are currently in seventh place in the Italian top flight, and with the likes of Keisuke Honda, Stephan El Shaarawy and Jeremy Menez, Filippo Inzaghi now possesses one of the most effervescent attacking line-ups in the Italian top flight. Here’s a closer look at exactly what Cerci could bring to Milan:

Milan are currently two points off the Champions League places, and Inzaghi will be hoping the edge provided by Cerci can haul his team into contention in the upper reaches of the Serie A table. With that in mind, as noted here by Italian football expert Adam Digby, perhaps Milan have got the better end of the stick with this deal:

Bleacher Report’s Sam Tighe also thinks that the San Siro outfit have played a blinder here:

Indeed, during the 2013/14 season, Torino were galvanised by the displays of Cerci, eventually finishing in seventh place in the race for the Scudetto and subsequently qualifying for the Europa League.

That season, Cerci topped the chart for assists in Serie A with 10, notching an impressive 13 goals to go with it, per WhoScored.com. With that in mind, it is no surprise he attracted the attentions of Atletico manager Diego Simeone.

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But Cerci has failed to make any kind of impact during his spell as a Rojiblancos player, failing to start any La Liga or Champions League games in the iconic white, red and blue strip. Indeed, as noted here by Bleacher Report’s Karl Matchett, standout moments in Spain have been few and far between for the Italian:

Initially, Cerci’s colourful and industrious forward play looked as though it would be a perfect match for the principles held dear by the Atletico boss. For one reason or another, it’s not quite worked out for Cerci in the Spanish capital, but for Milan, his acquisition is a major coup and one that the Rossoneri faithful should be very excited about indeed.