Report: Tottenham and Arsenal want table-topping £45m star more ‘dominant’ than Ronaldo

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Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal are big fans of Franck Kessie, but AC Milan have doubled the midfielder’s price-tag after a superb start to the Serie A season, as reported by Calciomercato.

It is three years since the Rossoneri spent over £150 million on seven new players in an attempt to usurp Juventus’s throne.

Flash forward to late-2020 and only two of those not-so magnificent seven are still playing regularly in red and black. While Andre Silva and Leonardo Bonucci flopped spectacularly at the San Siro, Hakan Calhanoglu and Franck Kessie have at least succeeded in living up to their substantial transfer fees.

Inspired by their dynamic midfield duo, Milan are five points clear at the top of the table and dreaming of a first Scudetto triumph in a decade.

But while Calhanoglu’s future is dominating the gossip columns over in Italy, with Stefano Pioli’s side struggling to agree a new deal with the Turkish set-piece master, there are growing concerns surrounding Kessie’s future too.

The former Atalanta youngster is yet to extend a contract that expires in 2022 and, according to Calciomercato, Spurs and Arsenal are watching developments closely.

The problem, for Jose Mourinho and Mikel Arteta, is that Milan are now demanding around £45 million for Kessie; twice as much as they wanted over the summer.

The 23-year-old powerhouse was facing an uncertain future at the San Siro a few months ago. But his dominant displays in the middle of the park this season have Milan convinced that tying him down is an absolute must.

So far, Kessie has produced three assists and four goals from midfield, taking over penalty duties from Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

“The most physically dominant? I wouldn’t say (Cristiano) Ronaldo, but rather Franck. It’s truly absurd,” AC Milan teammate Calabria said, claiming that Kessie is stronger than Juventus’s legendary number seven (Football Italia).

“He doesn’t work much in the gym but has a crazy physique. You can’t move him. You can run 50 yards to have a go, but you still bounce off him in the end.”