Liverpool could be set for disappointment in their pursuit of Spanish starlet Dani Ceballos as it emerges that Serie A giants AC Milan could be looking to upstage all their rivals.
Ceballos was linked with a lot of European clubs while he was making waves at Real Betis. From the Premier League, Liverpool were credited with the biggest interest as early as in 2015, while rivals Arsenal were also interested.
AC Milan also wanted the highly-rated midfielder to join their big-bucks revolution at San Siro while there was also steep interest from Catalan giants Barcelona. However, all the clubs were usurped in the chase as Real Madrid signed the player in the summer. That was supposed to be the end of the saga, at least for now.
That was not to be and latest reports from Sport (h/t talkSPORT) indicate that Milan are not deterred by the signing and once again try in the January transfer window.
Ceballos was a sensation at the Under-21 European Championship with Spain and was named as UEFA’s U-21 Europe Player of the Tournament. That was enough to spark a mayhem among the chasing clubs that eventually ended in Real Madrid’s favour.
The 21-year-old midfielder emerged from the Betis academy during the 2013/14 season and made more than 100 appearances for the club. At the Santiago Bernabeu, Ceballos has made six appearances so far for Zinedine Zidane’s side.
His route to the first team is not straightforward as he faces tough competition from the likes of Luka Modric, Toni Kroos, and Casemiro for a starting role, which could lead to a lack of playing time. Milan are hoping to exploit this and could tempt Ceballos with the promise of more first-team football. Especially in a World Cup year, the youngster could be lured by that prospect of more games to break into the senior team.
It is an interesting scenario but it is difficult to see how Ceballos may switch clubs so soon. Even if he hints that he may be open for a move, Liverpool would surely get back into the mix and Milan will have a tough battle on their hands.
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