“There will be a negotiation” – Chelsea ‘will be serious’ in January, club trying to fight Blues off

If you’ve been following the Chelsea transfer stories that keep coming out of Italy, then you’ll know that Rafael Leao is a target for the Blues.

He was over the summer, and remains as such to this day, with Todd Boehly seemingly extremely keen to sign the Portuguese for his new club.

Whether he manages it depends on Milan, who have been trying to renew their star for some time now, but a breakthrough hasn’t been found just yet.

This has left Chelsea with an opportunity to pounce, which they tried to do towards the end of the summer window, to no avail, and could return in January.

That’s what Corriere della Sera are reporting on Monday, who explain the Serie A side ‘cannot wait too long for Leao’s renewal’, as his current deal expires in June 2024.

They point out ‘it will not be easy, even if cautious optimism filters through’ as the player seems to want to stay in Italy going forward.

However, that doesn’t mean Chelsea won’t try to convince him otherwise, and ‘the road is long’ because the Blues ‘and others will be serious from January’.

Regarding that renewal, Paolo Maldini, who is in charge of such matters at Milan, was asked about this in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport.

He said: “Rafa understands that the path in the next few years must be at Milan. He understands this and tells us. There will be a negotiation, but we know that strong players must be paid their value. If the team grows further, Leao will have everything to compete at his fullest. Then, of course, there is no non-transferable for all the teams in the world.”

This optimism is also shared by football agent Alessandro Canovi, who spoke to TuttoMercatoWeb about the matter, even if he has nothing to do with the Portuguese star.

He said: “You have to ask his agent. Milan have always shown that they have clear ideas, they have never been shaken down and have lost important players on free transfers. The Rossoneri have a project, I don’t think there is a desire from Leao to put the club in a struggle.

“They will find a solution, even if I don’t think there will be the same continuity of output next year. However, we must congratulate Milan, as they are the club who have shown the most planning in recent years.”