'Godfather' Maldini forced me out of Milan- Taribo West

The retired Nigeria defender is very critical of his time at AC Milan, claiming he was not chosen despite being better than his Italian counterparts

Former AC Milan defender Taribo West believes he was better than club legend Paolo Maldini, but was treated unfairly by the Italian side.

In one season with the Serie A outfit, the former Nigeria international appeared in just four games, despite his self-proclaimed status as the club's best defender.

West remains bitter about his time at San Siro and has suggested that his short spell with the Rossoneri was a failure because of Maldini's "godfather" status.

"There were three of us, but the coach would pick the Italians even though I was clearly the best," he told Supersport.com.

"In 2000, I played the African Nations Cup with Nigeria and when I returned Maldini was injured. I played the games in his place but I did not get very many.

"I was told clearly that nobody could force out Maldini because he was a godfather in the club."

West was forced to take a seat on the bench while watching Maldini and Alessandro Costacurta start regularly, which the former Inter defender claims was because of their Italian backgrounds.

"Because I had a good relationship with [Inter president Massimo Moratti], I called him to tell him what was going on," he continued. "He told me that at AC Milan this was a normal thing.

"No one could take the place of Maldini. I was in shock. At the time they told so many lies about me because they wanted me out.

"During the four games I played, I was always the best player on the field, yet my contract was not renewed."


Information from goal.com was used in this report.

Taye Taiwo joins Bursaspor

Former AC Milan defender,  Taye Taiwo has joined Turkish club Bursaspor on a three-year deal.
The club made the announcement via its official website "A national team of Nigeria and AC Milan left-back Taye Taiwo has signed a 3-year contract with  Bursaspor."
Bursaspor will likely feature in the UEFA Champions League following the disqualification of Fenerbache and Besiktas. The club is also interested in Villarreal, Ikechukwu Uche.

Milan hint at El Shaarawy sale

Having closed the door firmly on the sale of Mario Balotelli and Giampaolo Pazzini, AC Milan’s vice-president Adriano Galliani is to hold talks with Stephan El Shaarawy this week to discuss his future with the Rossoneri.

The Italian forward, who only extended his contract until 2018 in February, is attracting attention from numerous top European clubs and Galliani has so far refused to categorically rule out the sale of the 20-year-old, who is valued at €40 million.

With French clubs Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco reportedly interested, and Manchester City also being linked with every top striker in Europe, Galliani expects El Shaarawy in his office as soon as he returns from the Confederations Cup to clarify the situation.

"I’m going to talk to him on Tuesday," he told Sky Sports Italia before suggesting that a repeat of the double sale of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva to PSG last summer could be on the cards for yet another Rossoneri fans’ favourite. "We’ve got lots of players and before we can buy anybody, we’ve got to sell."

El Shaarawy scored 16 goals last season, 12 of which came in the first 14 games of the season. After netting in the Milan city derby on February 24, he failed to find the back of the net again until scoring in the penalty shoot-out of the third-place play-off at the Confederations Cup on Sunday, but that drought does not appear to have put off potential suitors.

That derby goal was the only time he scored since Balotelli arrived from Manchester City, leading to suggestions the pair are incompatible in the same side and, with Galliani announcing that Balotelli “absolutely cannot be sold”, El Shaarawy is beginning to look surplus to requirements at the San Siro.

Information from soccernet.com used in this report.