AC MILAN are poised to make a renewed move for Moussa Dembele – but fear being beaten to the punch by Chelsea.
The Italian giants had cooled on the Celtic striker after being advised last month the £26-million they were prepared to pay would not be enough to land him, with Hoops boss Brendan Rodgers keen to keep the Frenchman for at least another year.
That, though, was before they missed out on their top target, Real Madrid Alvaro Morata, who is instead set to join Manchester United in a £60-million-plus transfer.
Yet while funding the £36-million or so offer which might persuade Celtic to part with the 20- year-old – scorer of 32 goals in 46 appearances last season – they know that is only half the battle.
A source close to Milan said: “The big feeling here is that in May, we were in pole position to buy Dembele. But now Chelsea are the ones who are best placed to get him.”
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The Premier League champions need re-inforcements in the forward area because boss Antonio Conte has determined Diego Costa has to go ahead of the start of the new season.
Conte is anxious to sign Romelu Lukaku from Everton for a fee of nearly £80-million. But with the club’s hierarchy baulking at the sum involved, they are also looking at other options.
They watched Dembele repeatedly over the season and were impressed by what they saw.
His displays in the two Champions League ties against Manchester City are thought to have gone down particularly well.
London is, of course, a very familiar hunting ground for the striker. Prior to joining Celtic a year ago, he spent three years with Fulham.
The Blues are by no means Dembele’s only admirers. Arsenal, a club with very strong French links, are also keen, as are Borussia Dortmund.
Celtic, meanwhile, have denied reports from France which claim they have bid £5-million for Lens defender, Jean-Kevin Duverne.
The Hoops were linked with the 19-year-old in January, and have been monitoring his progress.
But while manager Brendan Rodgers is an admirer of the ball-playing centre-back, no official move has yet been made.
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