Chelsea Offered Two Players To Ac Milan In Exchange Deal For Rafael Leao Last Summer
Chelsea reportedly offered Hakim Ziyech and Christian Pulisic to AC Milan in an exchange deal for Rafael Leao last summer.
The 23-year-old has been earning rave reviews with his performances in Italy since he joined the Rossoneri from Lille in 2019.
He was one of the key players for the Serie A outfit last season when they pipped Inter Milan to the league title.
His excellent displays led to a lot of interest from several top European clubs, including Chelsea, during the last summer window.
According to The Athletic, the Blues offered Ziyech and Pulisic to tempt Milan into letting Leao leave the San Siro.
The Premier League giants initially valued him at £87 million, and also offered the above mentioned players separately to sweeten the deal.
However, despite the Portugal international’s contract expiring in 2024, Milan turned down their proposal and asked them to pay his £130m buyout clause.
The West Londoners still didn’t give up on the 23-year-old as they returned for a status update on him in January when they had already secured a deal for Mykhailo Mudryk.
But it now looks the Italian giants have successfully managed to keep hold of their star player as he has penned a five-year deal that will see his buyout clause rise to £153m.
Leao is currently out injured with an adductor problem, with the young winger missing Saturday’s 2-0 loss at Spezia.
The Rossoneri will be hoping to have him back soon as they aim to secure a top-four finish by the end of the season.
Stafano Pioli’s men also face a huge challenge in the Champions League where they slumped to a 2-0 defeat against Inter in the first-leg of the semi-final.
