Manchester United and Chelsea are reportedly set to wage battle to sign AC Milan captain Alessio Romagnoli, who is also a target for Juventus.
According to a report by Italian outlet Calciomercato, Manchester United and Chelsea are considering a move to sign Alessio Romagnoli in the summer transfer window. The Italian international is also the subject of interest from Juventus, although AC Milan do not intent to part ways with their club captain.
Alessio Romagnoli joined AC Milan from boyhood club AS Roma in the summer of 2015, and has since progressed leaps and bounds. Now regarded as one of the best defenders in Serie A, the player has gone on to be handed the responsibility of being the club captain at San Siro as well this season.
Romagnoli & Van Dijk are the ONLY players in Europe’s top 5 leagues with 0 dribbled past this season ?
(who played in a min 2/3 of their matches) ? pic.twitter.com/uVpUMQ25pe
— Italian Football TV (@IFTVofficial) February 19, 2019
In addition to his astounding development, the fact that he has not been dribbled past even once in Serie A this season (as per Italian Football TV) makes for an impressive reading. That is why, it is hardly surprising that Romagnoli is now being linked with several big name clubs, with Manchester United and Chelsea, who have both been previously linked with him, are monitoring his progress.
At Manchester United, the need to sign a centre-back has been prevalent since the days of Jose Mourinho. Of late, the Red Devils have looked a lot more solid in defence, although their poor showing at the back against PSG showed that there is scope for improvement at Old Trafford.
To that end, Manchester United have been linked with a number of centre-backs, including Milan Skriniar, with Romagnoli now a viable target. Chelsea, on the other hand, have a more alarming need of a central defender.
Antonio Rudiger has continued his progress this season. But, fellow first-choice centre-back David Luiz has blown hot and cold, while Gary Cahill is completely out of favour with Maurizio Sarri. That leaves the Chelsea boss with just Andreas Christensen, who has also been a bit-part player this season.
Signing a player like Romagnoli would thus, bolster the Chelsea backline while also adding a leader to the first-team squad, something that appears to be the need of the hour. Meanwhile, in addition to the Blues and Manchester United, Juventus are also showing an interest in the 24-year-old.
However, AC Milan do not expect their prized possession to part ways with them in the summer, even if any club makes a lucrative offer, as per the report. Calciomercato also suggest that having committed his future to the club during their bad run, they expect him to stay put, especially with a return to the UEFA Champions League being highly possible.
It now remains to be seen if Manchester United, Chelsea or Juventus are able to land Alessio Romagnoli in the summer, or if the Rossoneri end up keeping hold of him.
