AC Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani was delighted with Antonio Nocerino's hat-trick this week.
Nocerino grabbed three against Parma in Wednesday's 4-1 win, just a matter of months after his switch from Palermo.
"Nocerino was a lucky swoop," Galliani told the Corriere dello Sport. "If you decide to go on holiday then you can't take advantage of certain situations.
"When I was informed that Palermo were ready to sell Nocerino I made them an offer, one that was considered as too low.
"I didn't give up though and the situation was eventually unblocked."