Fernando Torres has proven to be an expensive gamble that has failed to pay off for AC Milan, with the out-of-sorts striker moving back "home" to Atletico Madrid in January.
In turn, this has paved the way for Atleti to allow Alessio Cerci a move back to his homeland, as well, with the Rossoneri set to land him in an exchange deal that suits everyone.
Cerci moved to Madrid last summer after impressing for Torino, but he has found his opportunities limited in the Spanish capital while Torres scored just once in his four months in Serie A, which had seen him fail to score in his last 534 minutes of playing time.
As a result, the move arguably makes sense for both the respective players and clubs and from a Milan perspective, it gives Pippo Inzaghi further flexibility and threat across all three positions in his preferred attacking trident.
Essentially, Torres has had his move confirmed and in turn shared his delight with a return to Atleti through social media, and it is expected that Cerci will secure his move in the coming days.
From a footballing perspective, the move makes sense for Milan as they offload an ineffective Torres and gain a player who was regarded as one of the best players in Italy a year ago. However, from a financial point of view, there are questions to be answered as another relatively expensive gamble hasn't paid off.
It is reported that Milan will pay half of Torres' salary (around 4 million euro) per season, thus incurring further costs moving forward to add on top of those to make the move initially happen. It is an unfortunate situation that Torres lasted just half a season in Italy, but ultimately it wasn't working out as hoped.
As one of the few in support of the move, it was disappointing to see the Spaniard struggle with fitness and form after showing promising early signs. The vision upon his arrival involved a partnership with Stephan El Shaarawy and one which thrived on the counterattack, much like the tactics adopted in the opening two games of the season.
However, Milan gradually moved away from that strategy to become a more organised team overall while Jeremy Menez claimed the role through the middle as his own. In turn, that reduced Torres' playing time and didn't allow him to build familiarity and rhythm in his play with his new teammates and so ultimately it will be regarded as a failed risk.
While his departure does create a gap in the squad with Giampaolo Pazzini now the only out-and-out striker available, it will likely be more beneficial for Inzaghi and Milan as they continue their chase of Champions League football.
Cerci's expected arrival will effectively cover the loss of Keisuke Honda for January as the Japanese international participates in the Asian Cup, but beyond that, he will be an immediate threat to defences in Serie A given his history in the league.
In an ideal world, Torres would have rediscovered a degree of his best form at Milan and been motivated to get back to a high level of performance on a consistent basis. While Milan fans did see flashes of his old self, it wasn't enough to warrant giving up on the opportunity to acquire Cerci.
While the heart and determination is still there, there are serious question marks over whether or not the physical talent is also there to match it. As a result, the Rossoneri have cut their losses and admitted defeat in their bid to restore the old Torres, and there are doubts over whether a move home can even do the trick.