Chelsea report: AC Milan ‘confident’ of keeping Rafael Leao despite long list of suitors
Chelsea are among the clubs showing interest in the AC Milan winger
AC Milan insist they are confident that Rafael Leao will commit his long-term future to the club, amid reported interest from top European clubs including Chelsea.
The Portuguese star caught the eye of a host of big sides after firing the Rossoneri to the Serie A title last season, winning the league’s MVP award in the process.
Leao has a contract until 2024 at San Siro, but Milan sporting director Ricky Massara is hopeful that he will extend his deal.
“We are confident,” Massara said at Monday’s ‘Gran Gala del Calcio’ event.
“We want to consolidate the growth that this kid has shown and stabilise the team, giving consistency at the top level.
“We will try to find a solution to continue long-term with Leao.”
Sky Italy reports that Leao’s father will speak to Milan about a renewal on Tuesday, while the winger’s agent will also hold talks later in the week.
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Chelsea were linked with the 23-year-old, but Gazzetta dello Sport writes that Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, PSG and Real Madrid are all in the frame.
Milan signed Leao from Lille in August 2019 and he played a key role in their Scudetto success last season, scoring 11 goals and providing 10 assists in 34 Serie A appearances.
That form saw him win the Serie A MVP award for 2021/22, while he has started the new campaign where he left off, with four goals and five assists to his name already after nine games.
More Chelsea stories
Chelsea are said to have made long-term target Declan Rice their top transfer target for 2023.
Meanwhile, it's been reported that the Blues at the front of the queue to sign AC Milan and Portugal forward Rafael Leao and that they've already made an acceptable offer to RB Leipzig striker Christopher Nkunku.
In other news, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has described how he's found it "strange" not to be playing under Thomas Tuchel at Chelsea – after the German was sacked last month.
Alasdair Mackenzie is a freelance journalist based in Rome, and a FourFourTwo contributor since 2015. When not pulling on the FFT shirt, he can be found at Reuters, The Times and the i. An Italophile since growing up on a diet of Football Italia on Channel 4, he now counts himself among thousands of fans sharing a passion for Ross County and Lazio.
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