Sparta Rotterdam announced on 19 August 2026 that they had agreed a season-long loan for Andrej Kostić from AC Milan. The club’s own statement supersedes the original GOAL report’s description of a move that was merely close. Sparta said the forward would join the squad once the required work and residence permits had been issued.
The administrative qualification was not just a general disclaimer. In their 21 August preview of the Utrecht fixture, Sparta said Rogier Meijer could not yet select Kostic because the paperwork remained incomplete and he was not eligible to play. The club’s player-history directory subsequently records his debut against PEC Zwolle on 4 September.
Almost Signed analysis: there were separate transfer and selection milestones. The loan agreement existed before Kostic became available for the next match, so a completed deal did not immediately supply the coach with a usable forward. Equally, his absence against Utrecht was explicitly administrative; it was not evidence that the loan had collapsed or that Milan had reversed their decision.
The subsequent debut establishes participation by September, while leaving the exact permit-issuance date unstated. None of these club documents publishes a loan fee, purchase option or guaranteed playing-time agreement. They support a completed temporary move and a documented delay before selection, without turning the original development rationale into a promise about minutes or future ownership.
What remains unconfirmed
- The club sources do not publish a loan fee, purchase option, salary allocation or the exact date the work and residence permits were issued.