AC Milan continue their hunt for a new centre back with two names being frontrunnres for the job reports Sky Sport.
Fikayo Tomori finally returned on the pitch for the Coppa Italia match against Genoa. Unfortunately, it was a short lived return with the English centre back forced to leave the match after 24 minutes due to a muscle injury. The former Chelsea will undergo medical exams today to better understand the extent of his injury but he’s expected to stay out for one month.
Before the start of the match, AC Milan technical director would hinted that a new defender may not arrive. “In this beginning of the season we have seen the solidity and reliability of our back-up defenders so it is not certain that another centre back will arrive between in the January window”, said Maldini. However, Tomori’s injury has forced the Rossoneri to reconsider their plans.
Sky Sport reports that AC Milan will accelerate talks for Eric Bailly and Abdou Diallo after Tomori’s problem. The two are high on the Rossoneri’s list of targets for the defence but both have similar obstacles.
Manchester United are open to let Eric Bailly leave on loan but finding an agreement on the purchase option has been difficult. The Premier League side spent 38 million to sign Bailly from Villarreal and would like to recoup a significant part of the transfer fee. Nevertheless, Bailly seems more reachable than Diallo.
The 25-year-old French defender is rated at €25 million from PSG. A figure deemed too high by the Rossoneri for a player who is not a regular starter. Talks progress for both players. Despite Maldini’s denial, the chances of AC Milan ending the mercato without a new defender are unrealistic according to Sky Sport.
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