Santiago Gimenez: A Dream Move to Milan Stalls

Santiago Gimenez arrived at San Siro as if fired out of a cannon.

Fresh from terrorising defences in the Eredivisie with Feyenoord, the Mexican striker brought with him the kind of numbers that turn heads in every recruitment office in Europe: 65 goals in 105 games, back‑to‑back seasons beyond the 20-goal mark, and a reputation as one of the most ruthless finishers on the continent. Premier League clubs circled. Others asked the question. He chose Milan.

This was not a mercenary move. It was emotional. Gimenez grew up a Rossoneri fan, dreaming of the famous red and black, of nights under the San Siro lights he only knew from television. When the call came, sentiment and ambition aligned. Milan were getting a goalscorer in his prime; Gimenez was walking into the stadium of his childhood.

The script, on paper, wrote itself. Reality, as so often in football, had other ideas.

A dream move that stalled

Gimenez did not arrive empty-handed. Six goals in his first months in Italy hinted at a smooth transition, but the performances never quite matched the promise. The movement was there, the work rate too, yet the spark that lit up Rotterdam flickered in Milan.

Early on, the explanation felt simple enough: adaptation. New league, new language, new demands. Strikers often need time, especially those stepping out of a comfortable environment where they are the focal point. Milan were prepared to wait.

Then came the injuries.

His first full season in Serie A unravelled physically. Five months on the sidelines stripped away rhythm, sharpness, and confidence. Training ground sessions replaced matchdays. A player who thrives on repetition and instinct found himself stuck in recovery cycles. By the end of the campaign, his tally told its own story: just one goal, and that in the Coppa Italia.

For a forward signed to decide games, it was a brutal return.

A struggling team, a muted star

The conversation around Gimenez could have turned ugly. It has not, at least not yet, in part because Milan themselves have offered precious little to disguise his struggles.

Jared Borgetti, Mexico’s second-highest scorer of all time and a man who knows the weight of expectation on a national team striker, cut straight to the point when speaking to GOAL on behalf of 10bet.

“Unfortunately, the move to Italy hasn't been a good year for Santiago,” he said, before quickly widening the lens. It was not just about the No. 9. “I believe Milan as a whole hasn't been performing well, and when a team isn't playing well, no player can truly stand out.”

It is a harsh but accurate assessment. This Milan side has lacked fluency, identity, and consistency. For a penalty-box predator like Gimenez, that matters. He is not a soloist who dribbles past four men and bends one into the top corner from 25 yards. He is a finisher who feeds off structure, service, and tempo.

“He's a player who needs the team to be playing well, for the system of play to suit his style,” Borgetti added. If the collective stutters, the striker who lives off its patterns inevitably suffers. The atmosphere around the club, with head coach Massimiliano Allegri departing and senior players under scrutiny, has only thickened the fog.

The result is a player caught in the crossfire between personal form and a malfunctioning machine.

Faith, affection and a contract to 2029

What has surprised many is the patience in the stands. Milan’s fan base is famously demanding, often unforgiving. Yet Gimenez has not been targeted with the same ferocity others have endured in the past. The affection, remarkably, has held.

He feels it.

“I have supported Milan since I was a child, so finding myself playing in that stadium that I could only see on television means a great deal to me,” he told Billboard Italia. The words carried the tone of someone who knows he has not delivered, but refuses to hide. “The fans welcomed me with so much affection and, despite the fact I have not yet performed as I would have liked, they continue to push me and trust me. Like a family.”

That bond matters now more than ever. Milan are heading into another reset, with Allegri gone and the squad under review. Gimenez, tied to the club until the summer of 2029, sits right at the heart of the debate. Does he stay as a long-term project or become a high-value asset moved on before his stock drops further?

A fresh start has been floated. Borgetti understands why. Injuries, a misfiring team, a first year that never really got going – the arguments are clear. Yet the player himself is not ready to abandon the dream so quickly.

World Cup on home soil – and a bold promise

If there is a stage built for redemption, it is the World Cup. If there is a setting designed for Santiago Gimenez, it might just be this one.

Mexico will open the 2026 tournament at the Azteca, facing South Africa in a stadium that breathes football and history. From there, El Tri will meet South Korea and Czechia in Group A, with Gimenez expected to lead the line in front of a country that craves a deep run on home soil.

“When you wear the national team jersey, you represent an entire country, so you have a huge responsibility, but at the same time, it’s a wonderful thing,” he said, looking ahead to the tournament. There was no caution in his outlook, no attempt to play down expectations. “I know that Mexico, with its people, is very strong at home. I’m convinced it will be a great World Cup. Mexico will win, and I’ll be the top scorer!”

It is a statement that will divide opinion. Some will call it bravado. Others will recognise the mindset of a striker trying to reclaim his edge, to remind himself and everyone else of the player who tore through defences in the Netherlands.

If he comes close to backing up those words – if he leads Mexico out of the group, if he scores the goals that carry them into the knockouts – the impact will stretch far beyond one summer. He would return to Milan not as a question mark, but as a man in form, a man reborn, walking back through the doors at Milanello with momentum at his back and doubts pushed to the edges.

From there, the picture changes. A fit, confident Gimenez in a more coherent Milan side is a very different proposition to the stop-start figure of this past season. The contract to 2029 suddenly looks less like a burden and more like an opportunity.

The next chapter of his club career may well be written thousands of kilometres away, under the lights of the Azteca, with an entire nation roaring his name.