This managament don?t look at it that way?
This policy we save 10 M on transfers and 5 on wages might cost more then those saves long term
They look at these things on a case by case basis. Hakan would have had no resale value around the end of the deal he was offered. They decided 4.5m was the limit for him, anything more is where getting a younger, better maybe cheaper alternative becomes a more appealing option.
Donnarumma was a unique case where they were willing to make an exception. 8m a year for a 22 year old GK, no matter how good, is still an exception. Letting him go for free and signing an opportunity like Maignan actually saved us a ton of money in the long run, and there's a chance the performance level of the team might not drop that much if at all. It's not romantic for sure, but it made sense. The problem with Gigio is that even if he had signed it would have been really hard to sell him later on and still make a profit.
Kessie is an entirely different case. He's a lot younger than Hakan. His position and profile is very highly sought after. He's constantly improving and has been very consistent. His wage demand, although high, is not unprecedented. He would be on par with the best midfielders in Serie A, and he is one so he deserves to be paid as such. Management won't be stupid enough to blindly stick to an arbitrary wage limit like 4m and let Kessie walk, they're not stupid. They know even if he signs that they can sell him when the market recovers for close to 80m if he keeps on performing.
Kessie will sign, there's no doubt about it. Maldini just likes to squeeze every opportunity possible to get the best deal, but in the end they'll make it happen. They had 8m ready for Gigio. They can find around 5.5m or 6m the President.
