Premier League duo target ex-Man City wonderkid amid Real Madrid uncertainty

19 March 2023 , 07:30

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Brahim Diaz is wanted by Chelsea and Newcastle (Image: Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)

Chelsea and Newcastle are keeping tabs on the situation of Real Madrid’s former Manchester City starlet Brahim Diaz.

The 23-year-old forward has been in impressive form on loan at AC Milan and, as a result, a complex summer lies ahead. Milan have an option to buy Diaz for around £19million but Real Madrid want to recuperate the £23.5m fee they paid City to take him in January 2019.

The Italian giants will seek talks with Los Blancos to see if a deal can be struck at around £21m but they do not wish to go above that mark. That has opened the door for Premier League interest, including from Chelsea and Newcastle, and there is a belief in Spain that if any English side does come to the table, the fee could be as high as £30m.

The other issue clouding the situation is Carlo Ancelotti’s future at the Santiago Bernabeu. The Italian is under pressure with Real Madird 10 points adrift of Barcelona in La Liga, although they remain in the Champions League and will face Chelsea in the quarter-finals.

If Ancelotti stays, then Diaz will be free to leave, but if there is a change in the hot seat, then the club are open to keeping the player with the new coach to be given the final say.

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Brahim Diaz has scored five goals for AC Milan this season (Nicolò Campo/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Real Madrid want to extend Diaz’s contract, which expires in 2025, until 2027 with different clauses included. That could make it more difficult for Milan to sign the player, who had scored five goals prior to this weekend.

Diaz spoke about his future recently. Speaking ahead of the Champions League last-16 tie against Tottenham, which Milan won 1-0 on aggregate, he said: “My future? I am loaned by Real Madrid until the end of the campaign and we will decide our way for the following year. But in this moment, my head only is in Milan and on the game against Spurs.”

Tom Hopkinson