The story regarding the cooling break saga involving Theo Hernandez and Rafael Leao continues to spill over, and a report has even questioned how long they will be at AC Milan for.

La Gazzetta dello Sport begin by asking the question: ‘Now what will happen?’. Theo and Leao are pillars of Milan and there is no doubt about it, the club are aware of it, they have been here since 2019 and remain top players in their respective roles.

However, if we look a little deeper, there are some question marks. Theo has an agreement with the Rossoneri that expires in June 2026 and Zlatan Ibrahimovic claimed a couple of weeks ago that fans should not be worried about a potential contract extension.

“For their renewal, everything is under control. They know what we want, we know what they want. It can be resolved in a minute or maybe a little more, but there is no rush,” he said, when asked about Theo and also Mike Maignan.

Both the full-back and the goalkeeper are starters for France and have the eyes of many top clubs on them, and this will especially be the case if they have a year left on their contract. It is also obvious that both expect a pay rise.

Is Milan still their priority? From Maignan in the summer there were positive signals in this sense, from Theo less so. It is no mystery that in June he had a thought about saying goodbye, when he said at the European Championship: “Will I stay at Milan? We’ll see later.”

Theo’s somewhat cryptic statement came at a time when it seemed like Bayern Munich in particular were interested. Alphonso Davies was expected to head to Real Madrid, with the Frenchman ending up in Bavaria, but the former never happened and therefore neither did the latter.

Hernandez thus remained at Milan, just like Rafael Leao, who has been courted in vain by Barcelona in recent days. The Portuguese signed a contract extension just over a year ago, moving the expiry date to 2028 and significantly raising his salary, which has become the highest in the entire squad.

Leao’s Release Clause and the Future

At the same time, the agreement included a release clause of €175m to be paid in three instalments (one per year). It is a very high figure, which for now is considered too high by all of Leao’s admirers, given that no club has shown interest in paying it.

Rafa, who will soon become the father of twins, is tied to the city of Milano and to AC Milan as a club, but in the future never say never.

Theo’s Cryptic Statement and the Lack of Offers

Theo tried to pimp himself out over the summer, inviting other teams to make an offer for him and take him away from Milan.

Who made an offer for Theo?

🎵”Nobody”🎵(Keith Sweat voice).

Supposedly, the best left back in the world, in an official press conference opens the door and putting other teams on notice that he can be swayed away from Milan and no one makes an offer.

Real Madrid wanted Davies, and after they didn’t get him, they just extended Mendy, the same LB they bought for 50m in the same summer they got rid of Theo for 20m. They won 2 UCL’s with Mendy as a starter. Obviously they have zero interest in bringing Theo back.

What does that say about how other teams view Theo?

Maybe that reality check has him in his feelings.

Well… When a player basically makes a public “Make me an offer I can’t refuse” -statement just before the EUROs and no one comes knocking on the door… That might do some mental damage for sure. And who’s to blame here? (And Bart, don’t come saying it’s the management as they didn’t make Theo say that to the press). 🙂

Why Theo’s Cryptic Statement Might be a Result of his Current Situation

Obviously he wants a raise. It’s understandable since he’s not even in the top 5 for top salaries in the team despite everything he accomplished over the past four or five years. He now wants to be paid according to his status. It seems like it’s not happening and on top of that, Zlatan goes public saying “Théo is happy and is staying”. So I can understand that he didn’t like that. You have to do what you can to keep your best players, especially world class players. The fact that he’s not a leader is irrelevant, most star players are no leaders but they still have an impact during the game. Théo also saw his brother suffering a major injury. I can understand that he wants to protect himself. Man just look at the NFL, it’s common practice to skip preseason camp or refuse to play when players want a better contract and nobody is shocked (see Brandon Aiyuk) because it’s a business. The management thinks they have leverage because he’s under contract. Well he’s fighting now.

Is Milan Still a Priority for Both Players?

The interest from many top clubs, though, might cause him to waver, as might his prioritization of Milan: is it still his priority? It’s no secret, writes the newspaper, that he considered leaving in June.

For the Portuguese player, we are talking about a different context because his renewal is recent (until June 2028), and Milan has shielded him from Barcelona's approach in the final days of the transfer window.

The new agreement, however, includes a release clause of 175 million euros, payable over three years. It's a high figure, but we cannot rule anything in the transfer market.

Will They Stay or Will They Go?

The future of Theo Hernandez and Rafael Leao at AC Milan is uncertain. While both players are considered vital to the Rossoneri’s success, their desire for higher wages and the interest from top clubs could lead them to seek new challenges. With the current state of their contracts and the looming transfer windows, the coming months will be crucial in determining the fate of these two stars.

The fans and the club will be eagerly awaiting any news regarding their futures. As the transfer market continues to be volatile, it is difficult to predict what will happen, but one thing is certain: the story of Theo Hernandez and Rafael Leao is far from over.