According to Gazzetta dello Sport, AC Milan will appoint James Fontanella as Chief Corporate Affairs Officer. He was Gilardino's teammate.
Fontanella currently works as a finance and sports business journalist for the Financial Times, where he will be responsible for developing Milan’s relationship strategy with Italian and international institutions, and will work closely with Cardinale, President Paolo Scaroni, and CEO Massimo Calverti.
Born in 1983, Fontanella grew up in Italy and was a football player, serving as goalkeeper for Piacenza and Pavia. From 1996 to 2000, he played in Piacenza's youth academy, progressing to the youth team and becoming teammates with Alberto Gilardino. In the 2000-01 season, he played one season in Serie D for Pavia.
After leaving Italy for journalism, Fontanella worked for the Financial Times for 20 years, interviewing Cardinale multiple times. For the past few months, he has served as the US financial editor for the American economic newspaper.
Fontanella is first in the upper right corner of the photo, which is a group photo taken during his time playing for Piacenza.
