Rumour Mongering: Liverpool Retain Interest in Milan Star Kessié

Franck Kessié remains one of AC Milan’s key players, the 25-year-old Ivorian midfield anchor key to the Serie A side’s title hopes this season as they currently battle local rivals Inter at the top of the Italian table.

Franck Kessié remains out of contract at the end of the 2021-22 season, having signalled that he won’t remain at the club beyond the current campaign but having yet to sign a pre-contract with another club.

That intersection of talent and contract status has kept his name in the Italian press—with his future a major point of discussion since at least last summer—and, perhaps inevitably, Liverpool are again being linked.

According to local outlet La Repubblica, the most likely Serie A move might in fact be for Kessié to join rivals Inter in the summer, but ​​Liverpool, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, and Newcastle are claimed contenders.

While on paper Kessié would make for an attractive target, the presence of oil-backed clubs and a local alternative amongst his supposed options would, one imagines, make ending up at Liverpool rather unlikely.

Liverpool have always placed an emphasis on signing players who are fully committed to joining Jürgen Klopp’s ongoing project, and if that described Kessié he could have already signed a pre-contract agreement.

As such, given we’re now six weeks past when he could have done so, our expectation is for Kessié either to stay in Italy or end up at a side with less sporting merit willing and able to overpay for his services.