Tare reveals AC Milan ‘pact’ with Maignan and Modric over new contracts

AC Milan director Igli Tare is ‘emotional’ facing his former club Lazio, but reveals the club has a ‘pact’ with both Mike Maignan and Luka Modric on their contracts.

It kicks off at San Siro at 19.45 GMT.

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from today’s four Serie A games on the Liveblog.

This can be no ordinary game for Tare, who was first a striker at Lazio, then went into management as their director of sport from 2008 until 2025.

“I was there for almost two decades at Lazio, they were wonderful years and I carry wonderful memories with me,” Tare told Sky Sport Italia.

“We won and celebrated so much, it will always hold part of my heart in Rome and with this club, so I am emotional tonight, but as soon as the game kicks off, I will be cheering on Milan.”

The Rossoneri are still fired up after their Derby della Madonnina victory over Inter, even though goal hero Christian Pulisic picked up a muscular injury and is ruled out here along with Zachary Athekame and Santiago Gimenez.

It means Christopher Nkunku steps in to partner Rafael Leao upfront.

Maignan saved a penalty against Inter, but his contract expires in June 2026, so is there any progress on an extension or will he leave as a free agent?

“Mike is doing well, which we had assumed he would be. He’s been having a great season, we made some pacts at the start of the campaign and are not putting pressure on each other, as agreed. We are concentrated on the match today, then we’ll see how things develop,” insisted Tare.

The biggest coup of the summer was securing Luka Modric as a free agent after his Real Madrid contract ran down.

“We analysed last season’s results very carefully and tried to bring in players who have a strong personality and could make an impact on this squad,” explained Tare.

“His impact was immense, because he has the joy of a child playing football, and prepares every match with maniacal attention to detail.

“I hope he can continue playing with us. He has an option for another year, but we will agree his path calmly together, without pressure.”

This is a huge opportunity for Milan to climb to the top of the table, because they are in joint second place with Napoli, only two points off leaders Roma, and those two teams face off on Sunday.