Milan have opened negotiations with Atlético Madrid as they seek to dispense with the services of Fernando Torres, who is currently on a two-year loan from Chelsea, with the Italians hoping to secure Alessio Cerci in exchange.
Torres, a British record £50m signing when he moved to Stamford Bridge from Liverpool almost four years ago, departed for San Siro in the summer effectively to see out the remainder of his Chelsea contract in Italy. Yet the World Cup and European Championships winner has scored only once in 10 Serie A appearances and, having lost his place, has not played in the first-team since the derby draw against Internazionale on 23 November.
Milan had initially hoped to cancel the arrangement with Chelsea, but the London club are adamant the player is not returning to José Mourinho’s squad. “We have no space,” said the Portuguese when asked recently. “We have no space for players in our list, either in the Champions League or the Premier League.” With that confirmed, the Rossoneri are now exploring alternative arrangements.
The club’s coach, Filippo Inzaghi, is understood to have met with the chief executive Adriano Galliani after Saturday’s league draw with Roma – the Spain striker was an unused substitute in that fixture – to discuss transfer plans for the forthcoming window and determine how best to address the issue of Torres. Milan hope to offer the 30-year-old another temporary switch back to his former club, Atlético, in exchange for Cerci.
The Italian striker has, himself, struggled to settle since moving from Torino last summer and, having yet to make a league start, has managed a solitary goal in nine appearances in all competitions to date. It remains to be seen whether a deal can be struck, with Torres’ £150,000-a-week wage package a potential issue. Any deal would have to be sanctioned by Chelsea.
The Premier League club do not anticipate any first-team players coming in or leaving in mid-season, though they may consider permanent moves for some of the 25 players currently out on loan. Borussia Moenchengladbach are keen to secure Thorgan Hazard after the Belgian impressed on loan at the Bundesliga club, while Mario Pasalic – who has spent the first half of the season on loan at Elche in Spain – could depart for Besiktas.
