Everton have held talks with the mother and agent of Adrien Rabiot as Carlo Ancelotti looks to spark a reunion with the Juventus powerhouse at Goodison Park, as reported by Il Bianconero.
The mere mention of the name ‘Veronique Rabiot’ will forever be greeted with murmurs of disapproval in the French capital.
Two years ago, when the midfielder’s contract at Paris Saint-Germain was running down, barely a day went by without his doting mother dominating the headlines with one controversial comment or another.
“Adrien is a prisoner. He is a hostage at PSG. Soon, it is dry bread, water and a dungeon! This world is cruel,” she famously quipped when Rabiot was suspended by the Parc des Princes club.
In the end, when Rabiot departed for Juventus, PSG were probably glad to hear the last of Veronique; even if they had just lost one of the continent’s most talented midfielders on a free transfer to a major European rival.
So Everton be warned; negotiations with the Rabiot family are unlikely to be straightforward.
According to Il Bianconero, the Toffees have opened talks with Veronique, who also acts as Rabiot’s agent.
But with Juventus demanding £25 million, it remains to be seen if Everton are willing to go above and beyond to reunite Ancelotti with a man he handed a senior bow to all the way back in 2012.
After a slow start to life in Turin, Rabiot’s second season has been far better.
“He is a complete player, I have rarely seen someone so strong both physically and technically,” manager Andrea Pirlo said after another fine Rabiot performance in Juve’s 2-0 triumph over Cagliari on Saturday.
“He doesn’t even know the potential for improvement he can have, and we work on the mental side of things to make him understand that he is a champion. He is improving game after game.”
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