Ralf Rangnick told AC Milan yesterday evening that he will not join the club, ending the expectation that he could still arrive before the beginning of the World Cup. The move closes one path for the Rossoneri at a moment when their coaching search has already become more tangled, not less.
That is why Austria is being searched now: Milan were thought to be close to Oliver Glasner, and for a time Rangnick had been linked as a possible solution before the tournament window opened. Instead, the club is still trying to settle the question of who will lead the side while the hiring process stays unresolved.
Reports in the week had said a contract was waiting for Glasner, and he is still being kept on standby. He is also believed to be the only coach convinced of the Diavolo project, which made the latest turn all the more awkward for Milan as they continued to intensify contact elsewhere.
Matteo Moretto said contact is constant between Milan, Ruben Amorim and Matthias Jaissle, while also saying Glasner is losing ground in the race. That creates a simple but uncomfortable picture: the coach who seemed closest is no longer the only serious option, and the club is still talking to alternatives even as it waits for the rest of its structure to be fixed.
Milan have no plans to hire a manager until a sporting director is in place, and that is where the delay now sits. Rangnick is out, Glasner is not sealed, and the club is left juggling names while the order of appointments remains backwards. Until Milan name the sporting director first, the coaching search is likely to stay open and messy.
