Milan: Saelemaekers stops with an ankle injury, doubtful for Sassuolo

Milan resumed training after the international break, and the first session at Milanello already brought bad news: Alexis Saelemaekers pulled up with a problem in his right ankle. The Belgian, who had stayed in Italy after missing out on a call-up from his national team, had to cut short the morning session, the squad's first in a week.

Scans clarified the extent of the problem: it is a sprain to the right ankle, with tests ruling out both bone fractures and ligament or capsule damage. It is the news every Milan fantacalcio manager was hoping for: no tear, but the club's bulletin states that recovery will be assessed day by day, which leaves the bigger question open, namely whether Saelemaekers will be available for the league's return.

Milan will restart on Sunday 11 October away at Sassuolo's Mapei Stadium, before immediately plunging into a busy stretch with the Europa League trip to Salzburg and the San Siro return leg against Atalanta for matchday seven. With such a packed calendar, a match every three days, Saelemaekers's availability is anything but guaranteed: for now his participation against Sassuolo remains in doubt, and much will depend on how the ankle responds over the coming days. Amorim is nonetheless hoping to have him fully available as soon as the league resumes, at a point in the season when Milan cannot afford to lose players with fixtures piling up.

For anyone who owns him, the situation is delicate precisely because of this compressed calendar. Saelemaekers is valued at 14 in our price list, in a band (11-20) where his season has so far been a positive one: since the start of the year he has gained two points of value, with the latest upward move recorded as recently as matchday five, a sign of the kind of form that has made him a reliable pick for those fielding him consistently. Even a short absence therefore weighs more than average, since it interrupts a growth curve that was heading in the right direction and risks costing the Belgian the place he had earned on the pitch.

Should he miss the Sassuolo game, Milan's attacking midfield still has options: in the same role on our price list are Rabiot valued at 25, Pulisic at 24 and Chukwueze at 13, names that can cover the gap without disrupting anyone's fantasy lineup. But the final call rests with Amorim, and before settling any doubt it is worth waiting for updates over the coming hours, rather than trusting the first reports that circulated right after the injury, before recovery timelines had been established with any certainty by the club.