William Carvalho could replace Arturo Vidal at Inter Milan after Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Bromwich Albion decided against signing the Portugal international in January, as reported by La Razon.
If things had been different, the Euro 2016 winner would be battling in the bottom half of the Premier League right now rather than pushing for a European place under Manuel Pellegrini.
According to Estadio Deportivo, Wolves thought about reuniting Carvalho with Ruben Neves, Joao Moutinho and Rui Patricio at Molineux before deciding a centre-forward was more a priority than a ball-winning defensive midfielder.
In came Willian Jose instead.
West Brom also showed an interest.
But the Baggies also opted to look elsewhere, turning their attention to Celta Vigo’s Okay Yokuslu after being put off by the £18 million price tag on Carvalho’s head (Mundo Deportivo).
Whether Serie A leaders Inter Milan are capable of paying such a fee, at a time when their Chinese owners are embarking on a desperate cost-cutting mission, remains to be seen.
However, Inter may have an ace up their sleeve.
La Razon reports that Vidal, the veteran Chilean who only arrived at the San Siro last summer from Barcelona, could be included as a makeweight in a deal that would see Carvalho move in the other direction.
Vidal has been a major disappointment under his former Juventus boss Antonio Conte and the fiery midfielder would welcome an opportunity to play in front of one of Spain’s most passionate fanbases.
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