Barcelona reach verbal agreement with AC Milan star

AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie could be headed to Barcelona with Spanish press claiming a verbal agreement has been reached.

AC Milan have lost any hope of keeping Franck Kessie whose contract expires in June 2022. The Rossoneri have offered 6.5 million per season to the Ivorian central midfielder but the player and his agent George Atangana are not pleased. The parties are far from reaching an agreement.

The 25-year-old wants 8 million plus 2 in bonuses. That figure is out of budget for the Rossoneri and Franck Kessie is set to follow in the footsteps of Gianluigi Donnarumma and Hakan Calhanoglu who left the club as free agents. The next destination of Kessie could be Barcelona.

Spanish journalist Xavi Campos of Radio Catalunya reports that Barcelona are in advanced negotiations for Kessie. Nothing is signed yet but the parties have a verbal agreement. Barcelona have offered Franck a five-year contract at 8 million euros per year.

The news is also confirmed by Sportitalia in Italy. The Blaugrana aim to define all the details of the player’s contract in the coming weeks. Barca have offered the former Atalanta the same figure they had allocated for Georginio Wijnaldum last summer before the Dutch star had a change of heart and joined PSG.

Tottenham and Paris Saint-Germain are the other two clubs interested in Kessie but both hesitate to match Franck’s contract demands. Barcelona have recently receive a new line of credit and are able to invest significantly for new players like they recently did for Ferran Torres.

The departure of the 25-year-old midfielder on a free transfer represents a huge economic loss for the Rossoneri. In 2017 AC Milan spent €32 million to purchase Kessie from Atalanta. The Ivory Coast international has made over 200 appearances with the Red and Blacks recording 35 goals and 17 assists along the way.

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