Al-Ahli are reportedly keen on entering the race for midfielder Marco Verratti from Paris Saint-Germain, this is despite their Saudi counterparts, Al-Hilal being locked in negotiations for the Italian.
According to a report from French outlet L’Equipe, Al-Ahli are seriously considering making a move for the 30-year-old as his move to Al-Hilal continues to stall after their £30 million offer for the former Pescara midfielder was rejected.
Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano had claimed that the £25 million offer for the midfielder was nowhere near enough for the 30-year-old to make the move, with PSG reportedly demanding €80 million (£68 million) for the Italian midfielder.
This would be another huge blow for Al-Ahli’s rivals Al-Hilal as they continue to struggle to lure players to the Saudi league, unlike other clubs in the league who are finding no issues when it comes to buying high-quality players, albeit for a lot of money.
‘Concrete advances made’
According to the report from the French outlet, Al-Ahli have made concrete advances with the player’s entourage with the Saudi side wanting a midfield rebuild to match the attacking rebuild that they have already completed with Allan Saint-Maximin, Roberto Firmino and Riyad Mahrez.
Matthias Jaissle, Al-Ahli’s new manager who joined the Saudi club having previously managed RB Salzburg, will reportedly soon speak to the Italian midfielder directly about the move, and with a host of Premier League players in the squad for the manager to choose from, you wonder if Verratti would sway more towards the project under Jaissle.
To add to this, Verratti is reportedly keen on making the move to the Gulf State but everything is seemingly being held up by PSG, who are demanding an unrealistic figure for a player who is 30 years of age.