After parting ways with Diego Costa, Atletico Madrid have made an offer to acquire Arkadiusz Milik and are currently negotiating the fee with Napoli, local newspaper Corriere del Mezzogiorno and transfer market expert Alfredo Pedullà reported yesterday, confirming the rumours coming from Spain.
The Colchoneros have presented a €7/8M bid and are hoping president Aurelio De Laurentiis will lower his double-digit demands considering that in this case the Polish striker would not join a direct rival in Serie A. That has not happened yet, but it may down the line. The 26-year-old forward has okayed the destination and would get €4M per year.
Juventus, Roma and Fiorentina, which had all showed interest on the forward in the past, have not taken real steps to sign him in January. Milik has never been called up this season as he has been frozen out from the squad after the attempts to extend his contract or move him in the previous window turned out to be fruitless.
Our view
It would be a great landing spot for Milik: while he probably would not be a full-time starter like in other smaller clubs, he would see plenty of minutes and could easily fit next to Luis Suarez, and playing in Champions League is always a bonus. It would be an appealing outcome for Napoli as well given that the striker would the Peninsula and they would get something in return for him, but they will need to realize soon enough that nobody is going to pay a substantial sum for a player they can sign for free in just a few months.