AC Milan have reignited their interest in Chelsea and England midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek, sources have confirmed to 90min.
The Serie A giants, who have sanctioned the departure of Sandro Tonali to Newcastle United, are in the market for midfield reinforcements as they look to build on reaching the semi-finals of last season’s Champions League.
Stefano Pioli’s side have been trying to tie up a deal for Sassuolo’s Davide Frattesi, but face major competition for him from city rivals Inter, who are looking to replace Barcelona and Saudi Pro League target Marcelo Brozovic.
Milan had opened talks with Chelsea in May over a deal for Loftus-Cheek, but the Rossoneri then dismissed technical director Paolo Maldini and sporting director Ricky Massara – who had put the wheels in motion – from their roles, causing the move for the 27-year-old to stall.
90min understands that talks are back on between Milan and Chelsea, with the two parties speaking over the weekend to work out how to proceed – they also discussed the availabilities of Conor Gallagher, Christian Pulisic and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
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Chelsea have been looking to receive a fee of around £20m for Loftus-Cheek, but it’s believed that Milan are hoping to tie up a deal worth just over £17m.
Loftus-Cheek has just 12 months remaining on his contract this summer and has already been told by Chelsea that he can move on. 90min understands that he is interested in moving to San Siro, after speaking to close friend Fikayo Tomori, and is believed to feel that a move to Serie A could be the ideal landing spot to kick-start his career.
Should Loftus-Cheek leave Chelsea this summer, he will join a glut of players heading for the exit door as the club prepare to enter a new era under Mauricio Pochettino.
N’Golo Kante and Kalidou Koulibaly have already left to join Al Ittihad and Al Hilal, while Edouard Mendy and Hakim Ziyech are also on their way to Saudi Arabia to join Al Ahli and Al Nassr. Kai Havertz and Mateo Kovacic are also heading out of Chelsea, but they are staying in England to join Arsenal and Manchester City respectively.
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On this week’s edition of Talking Transfers, part of the 90min podcast network, Toby Cudworth is joined by Graeme Bailey and Sean Walsh to discuss the latest transfer news. On the agenda is Arsenal’s approach for Jurrien Timber, Kai Havertz and Declan Rice, the exodus of Chelsea players to Saudi Arabia, Moises Caicedo, Kyle Walker, Man Utd’s goalkeeper plans & more!
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