Since the start of the January transfer window, AC Milan have been trying to sign a centre-back, and failed at every turn, including in their attempts to get Clément Lenglet, currently at Aston Villa.
It was a different situation earlier this month, as the centre-back was struggling to get Premier League minutes under Unai Emery, who eventually gave them to him over the last few fixtures.
That complicated matters, as did the fact Milan needed to deal with both Aston Villa and Barcelona, which is why Gazzetta dello Sport believe they have given up.
The newspaper look at who the Serie A side could bring in in the next couple of days, with their list of candidates getting shorter and shorter after facing a number of rejections.
They recall the Aston Villa loanee ‘took the lead’ of their shortlist after Arsenal turned down their advances for Jakub Kiwior, but the need to deal with Barcelona and the Villans made everything ‘too difficult’.
They then moved onto Lilian Brassier, but Brest’s asking price of €12-15m was ‘considered too high’, and Stefano Pioli wanted someone with more experience than athleticism.
That’s where Lenglet would have fit in perfectly, but it simply wasn’t to be, and it appears the Frenchman is set to stay at Villa Park until the end of the season at the very least.
