Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea have all made enquiries to Inter over the possibility of a summer transfer for Slovakian centre-back Milan Skriniar.
All three Premier League sides are in the market for a new defender and Skriniar may be a better long-term investment than Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly.
Manchester United are primarily targeting winger Jadon Sancho, but Paul Pogba staying has led to a reassessment of whether the club needs an attacking midfielder like Jack Grealish, and if that money could be better spent on strengthening at the back instead.
90min revealed in April that Manchester City, who opted against bringing in a replacement for Vincent Kompany last year, are specifically eyeing at least one new centre-back this summer. Bayer Leverkusen’s Jonathan Tah and RB Leipzig’s Dayot Upamecano are among others they’ve looked at.
Chelsea, meanwhile, have conceded more goals than any other side in the Premier League top half this season, a poor record that has held back an otherwise promising young squad.
It was Koulibaly who has long been seen as Europe’s best available centre-back. Napoli are willing to let the 29-year-old Senegal international go and the latest gossip suggests the Serie A club have asked for £65m – less than the £80m+ he has previously been valued at.
However, 90min has been informed that Skriniar is now emerging as a credible alternative and that United, City and Chelsea have all held conversations about the 25-year-old.
Skriniar, who joined Inter from Sampdoria in the summer of 2017, only signed a new contract at San Siro last summer, giving Inter a strong position from which to demand a premium price.
United, City and Chelsea quickly learned that Inter won’t let him go cheap, valuing the player at around £75m, the same as Liverpool paid for Virgil van Dijk in January 2018. But that price tag, only £10m more than Koulibaly, hasn’t scared off the potential suitors because they consider Skriniar, who is four years younger, to still have room to develop and improve.
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Source : 90min