Before Derby summer move, player reveals having offers from Milan and ‘other Championship teams’

Yesterday we brought you quotes from Derby County defender Krystian Bielik in which he was discussing his move to Pride Park this summer.

The defender was Derby’s significant summer capture, with the Rams electing to pay £10m to sign him from Arsenal as Phillip Cocu built on the squad he inherited from Frank Lampard.

He’s yet to get going at the club after his summer arrival but made it clear that he intends to help Derby secure promotion back to the Premier League as soon as possible.

The move to the Championship, for such a high price, came as something of a shock given Bielik’s had spent the previous campaign playing League One football on loan at Charlton.

It seems he could have had an even more significant offer, though, with the defender saying that AC Milan were interested at one point, but ultimately it was Derby who paid the most to secure his signature.

“I hoped that I would get a more serious chance under Unai Emery, but it turned out that I wasn’t in his plans,” he told Sportowe Fakty.

“Before the European Championships I got an offer from AC Milan, but during the tournament, it changed, and nothing came of it.”

“I love Arsenal, I wanted to play there, but I had to leave. I didn’t think I could cost £10 million after the League One season and Euro Youth.

“I also had offers from other Championship teams, but Derby paid the most.”