AC Milan, Diego Moreira official! Fee, contract and Kaká’s No 22. First words: "Excited and in disbelief"

AC Milan have announced the signing of Diego Moreira on a permanent deal from Strasbourg. The Belgian winger has signed a contract with the Rossoneri until 30 June 2031 and will wear the number 22 shirt.

Born in Liège on 6 August 2004, Diego Moreira came through the youth academies at Standard Liège and Benfica, where he completed his development before breaking into professional football. He made his mark in Benfica's youth teams, winning the UEFA Youth League with the Under-19s in the 2021/22 season and, a few months later, the Under-20 Intercontinental Cup. The following season he also made his UEFA Champions League debut, featuring in the preliminary rounds of the 2022/23 edition.

During the summer of 2023, he moved to Chelsea and made his first-team debut for the club on 30 August that year in the Carabao Cup against Wimbledon.

Throughout the 2023/24 season, he also wore the Olympique Lyon shirt, before joining Strasbourg on a permanent deal in the summer of 2024. In Alsace, he gradually established himself as one of the most exciting young players in the French league, showing pace, technical quality and tactical versatility.

On the international stage, Diego Moreira represented Portugal at youth level up to the Under-21s and also played at the 2023 Under-21 European Championship. Since 2025 he has worn the shirt of the Belgium senior national team, making his debut in qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and taking part in the final phase of the competition.

Finally, AC Milan extend Diego a warm welcome and wish him every success, both personally and with the team, in the Rossoneri shirt.

To prise him away from the competition, with Roma also having tried, AC Milan put a monster offer on the table: €50 million fixed plus bonuses, which could take the deal to €65-66 million. Strasbourg also kept a percentage of any future resale.

Meanwhile, Diego Moreira signed a contract running until 30 June 2031 with a salary of €3 million net per season plus bonuses and the inevitable commission for Jorge Mendes, the architect of this operation.

Diego Moreira has finally chosen his new squad number. A key figure for Belgium in the No. 24 shirt, he will wear No. 22 at AC Milan, a number made famous by Ricardo Kakà and left vacant after Emerson Royal's departure last summer.

"I'm excited and also a little incredulous, because when you talk about AC Milan you talk about trophies, history and all the great champions who have played here. It's a great club: you know what they expect from you and I believe this is the right time to come here. It's very important to me that people understand that I'm a lad who likes to joke around, but who is also extremely focused and who, on the pitch, gives everything for his team-mates, the fans and the club. That will never change, because it's been part of me since I was little."