Fenerbahce have coming knocking for Rade Krunic again and this time AC Milan will not stand in his way as long as they get the right price, a report claims.
La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) report that the sum that will be collected from the sale of Krunic will be able to finance the January transfer market, and in particular the signing of a new centre-forward to reignite the Scudetto push. Jonathan David of Lille remains the first choice, but watch out for Serhou Guirassy of Stuttgart,.
From Turkey, in the last few hours, there has been a succession of news starting with the fact that Fenerbahce’s sporting director Mario Branco will arrive in Italy to discuss with Milan and convince them to agree a sale.
The Istanbul club and the players’ entourage have reached an agreement of around €3m net per season which is double what Krunic earns today at Milan. In short, the offer for the Rossoneri will be formulated soon, and will have to exceed the €5m rejected by the management in August. It is likely to start from a request of €10m, but Milan could accept €6-7m.
Stefano Pioli needs a striker to accompany Olivier Giroud (as well as a central defender, to reinforce a department drained by injuries). The proceeds from Krunic’s farewell, combined with the budget that will be allocated by the owners, will allow the CEO Giorgio Furlani, the head of the technical area Geoffrey Moncada and the sporting director Antonio D’Ottavio to go for a new No.9.
Lille still want €40m for David, who has four goals in 14 league games this season after netting 24 last season, which is why Guirassy remains an option and he would cost much less. The Guinea international has just knocked Dortmund out of the German Cup, scoring goal number 18 in 13 appearances.
His contract has a €17m clause and Milan are considering the idea of paying it, thus burning the competition ahead of the summer. Guirassy is not young – he is about 28 years old – but he would still lower the average age of the striker options available to Pioli.
In midfield who will fill the space that Krunic is about to leave empty? Assan Ouédraogo, a 17-year-old who is a starter at Schalke, has been closely monitored by Moncada since he was 15. His release clause is €12m but Milan will wait until June.
Also because, while Krunic prepares for his new life in Turkey – where he will meet up with his friend and national teammate Dzeko – Pioli plans to use Ismael Bennacer more and more.