Taremi in the spotlight as Milan move saga drags on
Rumors and speculations continue to swirl over the future of Mehdi Taremi for yet another summer transfer window as the Porto striker is again tipped for a move to a European heavyweight club.
While Manchester United and Inter as well as Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal have been brought up in the media as potential suitors, a switch to Serie A giant Milan looks to be imminent for Taremi, with several reports suggesting in recent days that it would be just a matter of time before the Iranian international joins the Rossoneri outfit.
With the 36-year-old Frenchman Olivier Giroud the only established number nine in the squad, Milan manager Stefano Pioli and the club hierarchy are believed to be considering the Porto talisman as a perfect fit to fill the void left behind by Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s retirement.
According to SportMediaset and Calciomercato.com, Milan has reached a verbal agreement with the prolific forward over personal terms, though an initial €13 million offer for the Iranian, who turned 31 on Tuesday, has been swiftly rejected by Porto.
The Portuguese giant has reportedly tagged Taremi with a €25m asking price but Milan, for its part, is not willing to go beyond a second €20m bid for the striker, whose Porto contract expires in 2024.
Still, a deal seems to be impending as Porto prefers to cash out on the Iranian in the current transfer window rather than letting him leave as a free agent next summer.
Taremi scored 31 goals, while providing his teammates with 14 assists, in 51 appearances across all competitions for Porto last season – including 22 strikes in the league which saw him finish as the campaign’s leading marksman.
He also netted five to help Porto win the group in the UEFA Champions League before being knocked out by Inter in the first knockout round.
Should the Milan deal eventually go through, it will be a massive step forward for a player who was only introduced to the European club football in 2019, when he left Qatari side Al Gharafa for Rio Ave in the Portuguese top flight.
Having joined Porto in August 2020, Taremi has bagged 80 goals and 49 assists for Sergio Conceicao’s side, lifting the league trophy in 2022, while winning back-to-back Portuguese cup titles during his time at the club.
Whether we have already seen the last of Taremi in a Dragons’ shirt or not, his Porto career will be best remembered by his wonder goal against Chelsea in the 2020/21 Champions League season – a stunning bicycle-kick strike which was voted the UEFA Goal of the Season and brought him a FIFA Puskas Award nomination.