AC Milan’s transfer policy in recent years has at times resembled a merry-go-round, with players coming and going at an almost dizzying speed. Kevin-Prince Boateng has featured prominently in this frenzy of arrivals and departures.
The 29-year-old first joined the club in August 2010 and stayed for three years before leaving for German club Schalke in 2013. The Rossoneri then re-signed him on 5 January 2016.
His return was a fairly underwhelming one. After his previous club suspended him following a disappointing performance in a defeat away to Cologne last May, he subsequently did not play for over nine months before rejoining Milan.
He made a reasonable start, showing some nice touches on his first appearance back against Roma as a substitute. And in his next league appearance, he scored in an impressive 2-0 win over Fiorentina at the San Siro. But since then, he has failed to make a real impact.
The prince is back! Boateng's goal against Fiorentina @KPBofficial pic.twitter.com/h9grtamdOt
— ACMILAN NEWS ACROSS (@acmilan_intl) January 18, 2016
Boateng has yet to make a start in Serie A action since his return, with his game time being limited strictly to appearances from the substitutes’ bench, of which he has made eight. In his last three league outings, he has garnered poor ratings of 5.91, 5.93 and 5.91, per WhoScored.com.
His decreasing influence is reflected in his public statements.
In February, he told MilanNews.it (h/t Football Italia), “I’d like to stay at Milan for as long as possible. I want to prove that I am important to this team.”
However in late March, when speaking to Milan Channel (h/t Football Italia), he said:
"I have a role that’s a bit different for me. I’ve always been a protagonist and a starter. Personally this is a bit of a difficult period for me, but the team is the most important thing. I’ve talked to the coach, I told him I’ll even play in goal! I’m fit, I’m at 100 per cent."
Boateng’s desperation to play does not seem to have boosted his chances, with other attacking midfielders such as Giacomo Bonaventura and Keisuke Honda well ahead of him in the battle for first-team football.
This is primarily because, in spite of the fact his positional rivals have played far more, he contributes far less than them during his time on the pitch.
ndeed, according to Squawka.com, per 90 minutes Boateng sets up fewer goals and beats his marker less than both Bonaventura and Honda. He also creates fewer chances than the former. Intriguingly, Suso—who is currently on loan at Genoa from Milan—also has a comparatively better statistical performance.
The Spaniard may return to the Rossoneri at the end of this season upon the conclusion of his temporary spell away, and, on current form, he is much-better placed to affect a game than Boateng.
On Monday night Sky Sport Italia (h/t Football Italia) reported Milan are set to replace incumbent coach Sinisa Mihajlovic with Cristian Brocchi. This news may encourage the Ghanaian, whom the Serbian clearly didn't see as a particularly integral squad member.
With a new coach installed, Boateng may get a second chance to prolong his second spell with Milan. It’s an opportunity he cannot afford to pass up, especially with his contract up at the end of the season, per Transfermarkt.co.uk.
On the surface, he’s the type of player the Rossoneri need right now. The team lacks flair, as discussed in this post, and he possesses the creativity and technical ability to potentially provide this. Unfortunately, he does not showcase these qualities consistently enough.
So far Boateng has done little to suggest his re-signing for Milan was anything other than the result of a scattergun transfer policy. For that, he is unlikely to warrant an extended contract come the end of this season.