The soap opera related to Rafael Leao's renewal continues, with the Portuguese talent's contract with AC Milan expiring in the summer of 2024 and the Rossoneri club trying for several months to find a solution, hindered by the fine that the player and Lille must pay to Sporting Lisbon for past contractual issues.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport this morning, however, negotiations would be close to closing with Milan and Rafa having reached a verbal agreement.
According to what the newspaper writes, in recent days discussions about extending Leao's contract have reached a stage never reached before in the previous months, so much so that on Thursday night, there was almost an agreement. The final seal was not given, but La Gazzetta assures that the verbal agreement between Leao and Milan has now been reached. The famous knot of the fine to be paid to Sporting still needs to be untied. However, the agreement between the parties would have been reached thanks to the availability of the player and his family and the Rossoneri management. AC Milan managers are ready to offer a five-year renewal worth 7 million euros net per season plus bonuses, to which 2 million will be added upon signing. This is a significant increase compared to the one and a half million received by Rafa currently. Furthermore, the Decreto Crescita still applies to the player, allowing Milan to have a less burdensome contract, with fewer taxes to be paid.
The biggest obstacle is still there, though, and that is the fine to be paid to Sporting Lisbon by Leao in partnership with his other former team, Lille. Currently, the value of the compensation is around 16.5 million euros, but the Portuguese club recently appealed to UEFA to receive the big prize of 45 million euros, i.e., the value of Leao's release clause during the days when he played for the Lisbon's green and whites. It is important to note that Milan has nothing to do with this matter and can do very little about it. However, La Gazzetta today reports that the Sporting-Leao-Lille triangle (with the Rossoneri as just observers) is seeking a solution that satisfies everyone and that indirectly unlocks the agreement between the Rossoneri talent and Milan. The newspaper underlines how unforeseen events can always be around the corner, especially in such a delicate matter, but at the same time, it states that great optimism is filtering from Casa Milan.
