All football players want to play at the highest level possible, Wigan’s Antonee Robinson is no different. However, now he has to regather his ambitions after a move to AC Milan fell through leaving him “gutted” according to The Sun’s Alan Nixon.
It all seemed as though seven-cap USMT international Robinson was going to get his shock move to the big-time with Serie A giants AC Milan. A £10million deal had been arranged that would facilitate his move from Lancashire to Itlay and all seemed rosy.
However, Robinson now is left to pick up the pieces of the failed move and, rather than gird his loins for an appearance at the San Siro, he must get himself ready for the hard slog that is the February-May Sky bet Championship season run-in.
There were various issues and demands, it seems, that led to Milan’s deal falling though. BBC Sport says that one issue with the deal was the time frame needed to complete additional tests other than the medical itself. They say that, after the medical examination, Robinson “needed more tests with the Italian authorities” that would have taken “up to 72 hours to complete.”
With the deal being rushed through on Deadline Day, that timeframe was always going to lead to the failure of the deal. The Sun’s Nixon added some colour to this with a series of demands purportedly coming from the communication between the two clubs. He says that Milan asked for an initial loan deal, with Wigan demanding “a full-time arrangement” before allowing Robinson to leave.
Another bugbear, according to Nixon’s article, was the manner of payment of the fee. Milan wanted to pay the £10million in instalments with Wigan wanting the full amount “paid up front.”
Combine all those details together and you have the perfect soup for a failed deal, which is what Antonee Robinson will be sitting there looking at today as his Latics side prepare to face Leeds United at Elland Road.
