AC Milan are prioritising the signing of a centre-back in the January transfer window and one name is currently ahead of the others, a report claims.
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According to La Gazzetta dello Sport (via MilanNews), the Rossoneri management are on the hunt a talented player who can alternate with Matteo Gabbia and eventually take over from the captain Alessio Romagnoli and Simon Kjaer.
The paper adds that in recent days Mohamed Simakan’s candidacy has surpassed that of Ozan Kabak and Matteo Lovato, with the Frenchman – who has been followed for some time by the Milan’s scouting department – now the favourite to arrive.
He has the requisites required as he is very young (20) and has great room for growth, plus from a tactical point of view he can satisfy the needs of Pioli as he can play both centre-back and right-back. In short, he is described by the paper as a ‘wild card’.
The costs of the operation should not be excessive as in October, Milan tried to close the deal by putting €12m on the table, a figure that Strasbourg deemed insufficient as the request was €20m. The Alsatian club is fourth from bottom in Ligue 1 and could settle for a smaller sum, while the player has given his green light to the move.