Manchester City’s £30 million summer target Manuel Locatelli missed out on a move to bitter rivals United when he was just 15, former Italy international Antonio Sabato has told Tuttomercatoweb.
They say good things come to those who wait.
And, eight years after Man United backed out of a deal that would have seen a teenage Locatelli move to Old Trafford, the Sassuolo playmaker could finally be on his way to England’s north west.
The Daily Mail reports Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City have made the £30 million-rated schemer their top summer target, with the runaway Premier League leaders looking for a long-term successor for the soon to be 36-year-old Fernandinho.
But, if things had been different, Locatelli could already be strutting his stuff on the other side of the Manchester divide.
“I remember when he was 15 and playing for AC Milan,” explains Sabato, a former Inter and Torino ace.
“There was United who wanted him but the requests were too high and Manchester withdrew (their offer).”
Locatelli would eventually leave Milan for Sassuolo and, after blossoming into one of the most complete and technically gifted young midfielders in European football, the Rossoneri reject looks destined for a return to the elite.
Speaking recently, Sassuolo chief Giovanni Carnevali admitted he wouldn’t stand in Locatelli’s way if one of the biggest clubs on the continent came calling.
“Whether it’s Juventus or City or others of global value, I don’t know. (Locatelli) deserves it and has the characteristics to aspire to play there,” Carnevali told Tuttosport, via Football Italia.
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