Chelsea have been offered the chance to sign Portugal World Cup star Rafael Leao after Arsenal and Manchester United ended their interest in the AC Milan winger.
Leao, 27, was heavily linked with Arsenal and Man United in the early stages of the summer transfer window.
Mikel Arteta was keen to bolster his options on the left-wing following Leandro Trossard’s exit, while Gabriel Martinelli could yet be sold before the transfer deadline.
But Arsenal signed Christos Tzolis in a £34m deal from Club Brugge, with the Greece international making a promising start to his Arsenal career.
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Arteta was open to signing a second winger, as shown by Arsenal’s ambitious move for Real Madrid icon Vinicius Junior, but the club’s focus for the rest of the transfer window will be on defensive reinforcements.
Manchester United also held some interest in Leao at the start of the summer but Michael Carrick is already well-stacked in the wide areas following last summer’s deals for Mateus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo.
Leao has been a mainstay in the AC Milan team for almost a decade, making close to 300 appearances for the Italians and scoring at least ten goals in each of his last five seasons at the club.
Milan are keen to get Leao off the books given their difficult financial situation and have offered the winger to Serie A rivals Roma, according to Gazzetta dello Sport.
Roma are not actively pursuing a deal, however, and as a result Leao’s representatives have also offered his services to Chelsea.
It is claimed Leao has been offered to the Blues as a possible replacement for Pedro Neto, who has been linked with Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal, Manchester City, Tottenham and Arsenal.
Chelsea are open to offers for the ex-Wolves man but would demand a fee close to £100m, according to recent reports.
Leao’s price tag has continued to fall this summer and reports in Italy say AC Milan would readily sanction his exit for 40m euros (£34m).
Earlier in the summer, Leao made it clear he would welcome a move to the Premier League after being linked with Arsenal and Manchester United.
‘I need a new challenge. I already won two trophies in Italy and have been there for a while,’ Leao said.
‘The league [Serie A] is evolving, but for my style of football, I think the Premier League or La Liga would make more of my talent, as a player.
‘If a Premier League opportunity were to come along, I would be very happy. I think that I can put my talent up against the players there, who are of a very high level.
‘Playing in that kind of a league really gets the best out of a player.’
Leao played in all five of Portugal’s games at the World Cup, scoring once, as Roberto Martinez’s side reached the last-16 before losing to eventual winners Spain.
AC Milan finished just fifth in Serie A last season and will hope for a better campaign under ex-Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim.
They face Torino in their Serie A opener this weekend while Chelsea kick-start their Premier League campaign on Monday against Fulham.
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