Manchester United are reportedly favourites to sign AC Milan goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma in a deal worth £40m this summer.
That’s according to The Mirror, who claim that United will face a battle with Manchester City for his signature as Jose Mourinho looks to put contingency plans in place in the event that David de Gea leaves Old Trafford at the end of the season.
As for City, their goalkeeping problems have been well documented. Joe Hart was shipped out by Pep Guardiola on a season-long loan deal to Torino, while summer signing Claudio Bravo has failed to establish himself as a reliable presence between the posts.
In turn, their interest in a player like Donnarumma is understandable. Nevertheless, the odds of Milan selling the youngster are next to nothing.
Having turned 18 on Saturday, the teenager’s future has been the subject of speculation as he has yet to sign a contract extension to commit his future to the Rossoneri.
With the club set to see Sino-Europe Sports complete their takeover of the club next week, Donnarumma’s renewal is said to be one of their main priorities, and given the financial power that they’re expected to bring with them to the San Siro, Milan shouldn’t be under any pressure to sell their top players anymore.
While things can change in football, it’s difficult to see a player who has grown up supporting Milan and has continuously insisted that wants to stay end up leaving, although agent Mino Raiola could have other plans to get his client the best possible deal.
Donnarumma continues to show maturity and quality beyond his years, and Milan will be aware of the fact that they have a possible club legend on their hands if he remains with them for the majority of his career.
As part of his 18th birthday celebrations, the youngster was reduced to tears as the club compiled a special video for him. This doesn’t really look like a relationship that will be broken up this summer…
We made @gigiodonna1 a surprise: impossible not to be moved!
Abbiamo fatto una sorpresa a Gigio: impossibile non emozionarsi!#Gigio18 ???? pic.twitter.com/9l8QO67OEE— AC Milan (@acmilan) February 25, 2017
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