According to a report in Corriere dello Sport, AC Milan are worried that Tottenham target Rafael Leao could make excessive salary demands.
Leao has arguably been the best attacker in Italian football since the start of the 2021-22 campaign, with his dynamic displays playing a huge role in taking the Rossoneri to the Scudetto last season.
The 23-year-old was on fire for the first part of the 2022-23 campaign, with seven goals and nine assists across all competitions (Transfermarkt), and he found the back of the net for Portugal in their World Cup opener against Ghana last week.
The versatile forward is thought to be on the radar of several Premier League clubs, including Spurs, Manchester City and Chelsea ahead of the January transfer window (CalcioMercato.it) while Barcelona are also said to be admirers of the player (Relevo journalist Toni Juanmarti).
90 min reported last month that Milan are keen to tie Leao down to a new contract and are even prepared to make him the highest player in Italian football.
However, Corriere have now claimed that although Stefano Pioli’s side are keen to secure the Portugal international’s future, they are sweating over the kind of salary that the player could request in their upcoming talks.
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It is asserted that if the former Lille man shines at the World Cup, his contract demands to remain at the San Siro could skyrocket.
Spurs Web Opinion
Even if Milan are unable to tie Leao down to a new contract, the Serie A giants would still likely demand well upwards of £60m for the forward in January, given that his current deal has 18 months left to run.
I simply do not see Spurs paying that kind of fee for an attacking player, given that we are in more desperate need of reinforcements in other areas of the pitch.
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