And among those decisions is nominating 38-year-old Matthias Jaissle as his preferred head coach candidate.
La Gazzetta dello Sport reported that Rangnick has met with AC Milan owner Gerry Cardinale and advisory board member Zlatan Ibrahimović, and that a second meeting is imminent as the club races to rebuild its entire senior structure. Rangnick's contract with the Austrian Football Association expires after the World Cup in July, at which point he would be free to move.
His conditions are significant. He wants to choose both the sporting director and the head coach without interference from ownership or the advisory structure. The Milan project he envisions is one built around a consistent playing identity — gegenpressing, high pressing, vertical transitions — that would survive changes in personnel, mirroring the model he implemented at Hoffenheim and across the Red Bull network.
Jaissle, currently head coach of Saudi Pro League club Al-Ahli, is the first name on Rangnick's shortlist. The German, who won two AFC Champions League titles in Jeddah, came through the Red Bull system under Rangnick's influence at FC Liefering and RB Salzburg before making his move to Saudi Arabia in 2023. He is contracted until 2027 but is understood to be open to a return to European football.
Oliver Glasner, who is leaving Crystal Palace after guiding them to the Conference League title, is also on the list. Mauricio Pochettino — available after the World Cup if he does not extend with the United States — remains under consideration as a third option, though his candidacy is contingent on Rangnick securing the sporting director role first.
Andoni Iraola's contract at Bournemouth also expires this summer, and his name continues to circulate in connection with the vacancy.
Milan dropped from third to fifth in Serie A on the final day of the season, losing 2-1 at home to Cagliari to miss Champions League football for the second consecutive year. Max Allegri, sporting director Igli Tare, technical director Geoffrey Moncada and CEO Giorgio Furlani were all dismissed in the immediate aftermath.
The new structure, if Rangnick accepts, would represent the most significant overhaul of Milan's sporting department in a decade.