Everton have had a bid rejected for Lazio’s Joaquin Correa with Premier League rivals Aston Villa now favourites to sign the Serie A star, as reported by Tuttomercatoweb.
When new Biancocelesti coach Maurizio Sarri admitted on June 10 that Correa had asked to leave the Stadio Olimpico outfit, there appeared to be a glint of light at the end of a winding tunnel.
At the time, few would have expected, one month on, that Correa would still be a Lazio player on the eve of the new Serie A season. But that is the situation facing us – and him – as we approach mid-August.
Given the amount of interest in his services – Paris Saint-Germain, Arsenal and Liverpool have all been linked while Spurs director Fabio Paratici is a huge fan – that is certainly something of a surprise.
And with Lazio refusing to soften their stance, demanding a fee in the region of £25 million for a man who has another three years on his contract, the Argentine international is now facing up to another season at a club who missed out on Champions League qualification last season.
Could Joaquin Correa still move to the Premier League?
Tuttomercatoweb report that both Everton and Arsenal have failed to meet Lazio’s demands, bids from Goodison Park and the Emirates falling some way short of expectations.
But Inter Milan and Aston Villa are still in the race.
And, after Aston Villa sold Jack Grealish to Manchester City for a British record fee, Inter could also be about to net a £100 million windfall as Romelu Lukaku edges ever closer to a second spell at Chelsea.
Lazio president Claudio Lotito is as savvy as they come, however.
Don’t be surprised if the capital city giants suddenly increase Correa’s price-tag, knowing that Villa and Inter have £100 million burning a hole in their back pockets.
The Sunday Mirror (8 August, page 75) reports that Aston Villa are the current frontrunners for Correa, a skillful, direct and occasionally unplayable talent who could form a thrilling forward line with Ollie Watkins, Danny Ings and Leon Bailey.
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