Inter director Piero Ausilio reveals he had personally reached an agreement with Rafael Leao before his move to Milan but refuses to explain why he didn’t finalise the deal.
Leao joined Milan from Lille in a €30m deal in the summer of 2019, but Inter director Ausilio has now revealed that the Portuguese star could have joined the Nerazzurri instead.
“Leao was very close to Inter. I met him in London, and I reached an agreement, but I won’t tell you why we didn’t close the deal,” the Nerazzurri sports director told Inter expert Fabrizio Biasin during a live interview on Instagram on Wednesday, as quoted by Calciomercato.com.
Leao has 13 goals and 13 assists in 44 appearances across all competitions with Milan.
Last summer, he signed a contract extension with the Rossoneri until June 2028, becoming the highest-paid pair player on the team with a €7m-a-year salary.
His new agreement with the Serie A giants includes a €175m clause but according to the latest report from La Gazzetta dello Sport, no top European clubs are convinced to match it and sign the Portuguese star in the summer.