AC Milan are closing in on securing the signature of Boca Juniors midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur, and will likely miss out on Chelsea’s Juan Cuadrado.
It was reported a few days ago that the Rossonerri were interested in acquiring the 19-year-old and had even tabled a €15 million bid for him. Now, Gazzetta World reports that there was a meeting held in Ibiza regarding this matter and Milan have moved a step closer to securing his signature. The report states that AC Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani had met with Mino Raiola, Davide Lippi and Pablo Cosentino to discuss a transfer for Bentancur.
Pablo Cosentino, who was the former director of Catania, has acted as a sort of a middle-man between Boca Juniors and Milan during these negotiations. Juventus, who had right of first refusal on Bentancur included in the deal which saw Carlos Tevez go the other way, don’t seem to be interested in the youngster, which leaves Milan in pole position to sign him.
No chance of Cuadrado
If Milan were to bring in Rodrigo into the squad, they would have to give up their pursuit for fellow South American Juan Cuadrado. The Chelsea winger had a fine spell on loan with Juventus last term and it looked like he would return to Turin on a permanent basis, but Antonio Conte’s arrival may give him another chance to impress in England. However, until recently, that would not have stopped Milan from making an offer and trying to lure him to the San Siro.
But should Bentancur arrive, that would leave no more space for non-European Union players in the dressing room, according to Gazzetta World. Milan have since been linked with Napoli target Marko Rog now that non-EU players aren’t an option. Despite having new owners at the club, Milan still have a lot of financial constraints. Bentancur would also prove to be a much cheaper option for Milan as Chelsea would’ve looked to recuperate as much as they could have of Cuadrado’s reported €30 million transfer fee, double of what they have to pay for Bentancur.