Arsenal have been handed a boost in their pursuit of Lille midfielder Renato Sanches by the player’s interest in the Premier League.
Milan were heavily linked with a move to sign the Portugal international in January but despite a €20million (£16.8m) deal reportedly being agreed between the clubs, no deal came to fruition.
The 24-year-old has seen his career transform since joining the Ligue 1 club in 2019, after enduring a difficult three seasons with Bayern Munich.
Sanches played a starring role as Lille stunned European football by beating all-conquering Paris Saint-Germain to last season’s Ligue 1 title.
Despite his relatively young age, the central midfielder has now won league titles in Portugal, Germany and France – alongside helping Portugal to the European Championships title in 2016.
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Sanches has now won nine trophies across his career and has accumulated over 250 appearances for club and country.
He is out of contract at the Ligue 1 club in the summer of 2023 and with 18 months remaining on his contract, that is the tipping point whereby the power in any negotiation process switches from the club to the player.
Reports in Italy suggested that although Milan were ready to outlay the money needed to sign him in January, they were unable to bring his salary demands down.
While a transfer fee would have cost an affordable £16.8million, that the player was requesting a base annual salary of £5million along with the monetary demands of agent Jorge Mendes put the brakes on a move.
Another element that saw the transfer break down, as outlined by Sportitalia via Football Italia, is the player’s desire for a Premier League specific clause to be inserted into his contract.
That would mean that English clubs would hold an advantage when trying to sign the 32-time capped Portugal international.
It is also indicative of the player’s desires to one day return to the Premier League – having previously had a forgettable stint at Swansea City.
Sanches made 15 appearances for the Swans in the 2017-18 campaign and was unable to halt the club’s relegation to the Championship.
It was not until his switch to Lille in 2019 that he began to find his best form and started to fulfil his obvious potential.
Speaking in December, the Portuguese international specifically namechecked the Gunners as one of the clubs that were interested in acquiring his services.
Sanches explained : “Who is interested in me? Maybe Milan and Arsenal are interested, but I don’t know. I talked to my agent, I know which clubs are calling and which are not, but now I can’t tell. But I know I’m ready. If it happens, I’ll see what’s best for me.
“Milan? It’s a great club, a historic club. It's classy. I like it. I was supposed to go to Barcelona in the summer, then my injury blew everything up. Leave in January? I know I’m ready. If an offer comes in.”
Mikel Arteta could be in the market for a central midfield player in the summer – and the apparent interest of Sanches to move to the Premier League could be a massive boost in any pursuit.
