AC Milan officials have reportedly held talks with the representatives of Rafael Leao with the view of facilitating a sale this summer.
The 27-year-old joined us from Lille in 2019 and has since gone on to make 291 appearances for the club, scoring 80 goals and providing 65 assists in those outings.
While he has been our talisman in attack for some time and has been a critical part of our previous successes, the Portuguese international hasn’t always fully convinced and has suffered from dips in form where question marks have been raised over his future at the club.
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Things certainly changed earlier this summer though as he made his intention public over seeking a new challenge and ultimately a move away from Milan ahead of next season, while our hierarchy haven’t exactly covered themselves in glory in relation to this situation either.
Nevertheless, according to MilanNews, talks were held between Milan’s management team and Leao’s agent, and the key point reported is that the focus is on facilitating a sale in this transfer window.
It’s added that it won’t be a simple process as there are no current offers on the table for the forward, while Milan’s touted valuation of €60m to €70m could be problematic given Leao’s struggles last season and the current situation between the two parties.
In turn, it’s suggested that an expensive loan with an obligation to buy could be a solution if interest is expressed, and so it’s hoped that a deal which suits Milan is eventually found to offload Leao and arm us with the necessary funds to improve our attacking options moving forward, albeit little is expected to happen until his World Cup campaign concludes.
Given he has been such a lynchpin in our attack for so long, it will be a blow to lose Leao, as when in form, he is a match winner and game changer. In turn, those will be big boots to fill, but with Ruben Amorim now in charge and looking to implement his own ideas and style of play, selling Leao may well help provide him with the transfer funds required to bring in his preferred options.
Milan have already signed Goncalo Ramos to now lead the line up front, so it will be fascinating to see if Leao gets a move elsewhere and how that shapes the remainder of our transfer window as we look to build a more competitive squad.
What is certain is that this will now be an incredibly busy period as meetings are held with numerous agents and players to discuss their futures, but at this stage, it sounds as though Leao won’t be part of any planning beyond this summer.
