AC Milan are interested in Real Madrid midfielder James Rodriguez and would be willing to make a massive £95 million bid for the Colombian international.
According to a report in Don Balon, the Serie A giants are interested in the Colombian are willing to make a ‘crazy deal’ for the 25-year-old. Their interest is said to have stemmed from the interest of their fierce rivals Inter, who are also rumoured to be interested in Rodriguez.
AC Milan’s Vice President and CEO Adriano Galliani is reportedly in contact with Madrid and the report states that Los Blancos have been notified of Milan’s plans for the following season. By then, the Sino-Europe Group would have likely taken full control of the Rossonerri and started rebuilding.
Milan have reportedly requested Real Madrid to inform them if their fierce rivals Inter table an official offer for James before they agree on the deal. This, so that they may place a bigger bid of their own and are reportedly willing t0 spend £95 million on the the former AS Monaco man.
This move would make him the third most expensive player in the world, third only behind Paul Pogba and Gareth Bale, placing him ahead of the likes Cristiano Ronaldo, Gonzalo Higuain and Luis Suarez. However, AC Milan are not guaranteed a place in next season’s Champions League and that may prove to be a stumbling block.
While Vincenzo Montella’s talented young side have certainly shown a lot of promise with their exciting football, they currently sit at 7th place in the Serie A, one point behind Inter Milan and 3 points behind the nearest Champions League place, currently occupied by Lazio.
It may prove to be too difficult to tempt James to leave Santiago Bernabeu without the Champions League, especially having won it last year. He may win it once again this year and after that, a move to a club currently in contention for the Europa League spot may be viewed as a step down.
While Real might be tempted to accept a huge bid from the Italian outfit, James has himself stated that he wished to stay in the Spanish Capital. “I always want to be here,” he said after their victory against Eibar. “You never know what’s going to happen, but I want to stay here.”
James has constantly been linked with a move away from Real Madrid after failing to make a regular place from himself in Zinedine Zidane’s squad over the past 2 seasons. He has also had to compete with Isco, Modric, Kroos, Kovacic and Marco Asensio for a place in the starting XI.
He has made only 23 appearances this season and has started only 13 of those matches. Injuries have also played their part in keeping the 25-year-old out of action and it is likely that he will once again be forced to consider his future come the end of the season. He is not short of options however, and AC Milan have only joined a long list of possible suitors which also include the likes of Manchester United and Bayern Munich.