Chelsea vs Manchester City: 120m fight for Portugal star – SOCCER

This could be a hot winter!

According to the Italian portal “Tuttomercatoweb”, the Premier League heavyweights FC Chelsea and Manchester City want in the coming Transfer-Period a push at Rafael Leao (23) from AC Milan dare.

The “Blues” from London should currently have the better cards. Chelsea had already had informal talks with Milan in the summer. However, the reigning Italian champions had made it clear that the Portuguese national striker was not available.

But how long is this “no” valid? According to “Tuttomercatoweb”, financially strong Chelsea should be ready to put up to 120 million euros on the table for Leao. An offer from Manchester could move in a similar framework. It is quite possible that the Milanese will start pondering this sum.

In the case of a Chelsea deal, there could also be a player swap. Christian Pulisic (24), Hakim Ziyech (29) and Armando Broja (21) would be candidates for a move to Milan, the Italians write.

Leao’s contract with Milan runs until 2024. But the “Rossoneri” would like to extend it with the 23-year-old, if possible before the start of the World Cup in Qatar (November 20th to December 18th).

In order to make Leao’s signature palatable, the Serie A club plans to make the Portuguese the highest-paid player in Italy, according to “90min”. Even ahead of Juventus stars Paul Pogba (29) and Dusan Vlahovic (22).

Leao has been playing for Milan since 2019, who brought him from French club OSC Lille for a transfer fee of 29.5 million euros. The striker began his career at the traditional Portuguese club Sporting Lisbon. In 2018 he moved to Lille on a free transfer. Leao’s current market value is 70 million euros (source: Transfermarkt.de).