Udinese director Gianluca Nani has confirmed that there have been talks with AC Milan over Lazar Samardzic but also that no offer has arrived yet, and that they want to keep him.
The links between Milan and Samardzic stretch back to when he was a player in Hertha BSC’s academy and have been going on virtually every summer since, but this time they seem more serious than previous years.
The 22-year-old is understood to want to take the next step in his career and the Rossoneri can offer that given they have Champions League football. Recent reports have claimed that talks are underway and that the player is keen on the move.
Samardzic is a versatile profile given that he has played both as a mezzala and as an attacking midfielder during his career so far, so he would give Paulo Fonseca some flexibility.
Gianluca Nani – the technical director of Udinese – spoke to Sky about the rumours that are growing in intensity regarding the idea of Samardzic ending up at Milan.
“He is an Udinese player, who we do not want to sell, we consider him important. Then if a suitable offer were to arrive, it is part of our work and discussion, both with the player, with the entourage and with the team he wants,” he said (via MilanNews).
“But we are not proposing Samardzic to other clubs. There was a fairly quick discussion with Milan, but there has been no official offer and no negotiations. At this moment, we are happy to keep Samardzic.
“Valuation? It is difficult to evaluate a player you want to keep, he is important for us. I would be surprised if other teams were not looking for him. He is a strong player.”