Arsenal and Aston Villa are reportedly in a race to explore a move for AC Milan’s Alphadjo Cisse, following a stellar start to life at the San Siro.
According to Hooligan Soccer, AC Milan sensation Alphadjo Cisse is garnering plenty of high-profile interest from Premier League clubs, with as many as four teams keen. Arsenal and Aston Villa are among those keen to explore a move in the near future, with the Rossoneri set to demand a significant price for the 20-year-old rising star.
Alphadjo Cisse come through the Hellas Verona youth system, AC Milan agreed a deal last January when he was playing for US Catanzaro in the second division. The Rossoneri reportedly paid around €8.4 million plus add-ons and sent him back to Catanzaro to continue his season, and he finished the term with six goals to his name.
Since making the move to Milan, new boss Ruben Amorim took little to no time to integrate Cisse into his first-team plans despite having barely any experience playing in the top flight. The decision has proved to be a correct one, as Cisse has been one of the prominent performers for the Rossoneri, with eight goals to his name in 13 games across all competitions.
Premier League teams circling Alphadjo Cisse
Given the nature of the current market, where top teams are constantly on the lookout for young talents with high potential, Cisse being linked with a few prominent sides, especially from the Premier League, may not come as a surprise. Arsenal and Aston Villa are seen as strong suitors for the 20-year-old AC Milan sensation, while they are part of a four-way race with Newcastle United and Brighton also linked.
Cisse’s rising potential and his goalscoring prowess are the reasons why Mikel Arteta is probably impressed. The 20-year-old AC Milan sensation tends to feature in an attacking midfield role prominently, but is also equally capable of playing deeper in midfield or as a second striker. Arsenal have incidentally seen links to Nico Paz as an example, and Cisse could be viewed as a strong alternative in future windows.
Aston Villa are also in the market to reinforce the midfield or the role further advanced, amid links to Galatasaray’s Gabriel Sara. Unai Emery is slowly, but steadily, building a squad with quality depth to keep rising in the ranks, and adding a player with high potential such as Cisse will be seen as crucial.
For now, none of the interested clubs have made any advances to AC Milan or the player’s camp, with the Rossoneri expected to demand between €50–60 million for the young attacker. Whether those teams see it as viable enough to pay as much remains the question, with Cisse likely to be monitored extensively by those keen.