Milan Chief Confirms Interest in Signing Napoli Star as Speculation Mounts Over Donnarumma Future

AC Milan have confirmed their interest in signing Napoli's Pepe Reina as Gianluigi Donnarumma's future continues to be speculated about.

I Rossoneri's sporting director Massimiliano Mirabelli spoke to Sky Sport Italia (h/t Goal) in the wake of his team's 2-0 loss to Arsenal on Thursday and pretty much reaffirmed reports that they wished to poach the veteran goalkeeper away from Naples.

Reina has been linked with a move away from the Serie A title challengers over the past six months as his contract nears its June expiry date.

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And Mirabelli confirmed that Milan had approached their Italian rivals about potentially taking the 35-year-old off their hands when the season draws to a close.

He said: “We did inform Napoli that we want to speak to Pepe Reina’s agent, because we want to see if there’s a possibility of bringing the player to Milan.”

Reina would only prove to be a stop gap for Milan if they were to sign him as the ex-Liverpool star enters the final few years of his footballing career.

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The Spaniard would certainly be brought in to replace Donnarumma if he traded Stadio San Paolo for San Siro, with the 19-year-old continuing to be linked to the likes of Real Madrid despite the Italy international penning a new deal late last year that ties him to Milan until the summer of 2021.

Losing Donnarumma seems inevitable for Milan unless they make a remarkable return to the glory days that they enjoyed in the 1990s and early 2000s, but Reina would go some way to providing a decent replacement whilst they wait for the next shot-stopper to emerge from their youth ranks.

The former Bayern Munich keeper has made 171 appearances in all competitions over the past two-and-a-half seasons for Napoli, including 36 times for Maurizio Sarri's team this term.

The custodian has managed to rack up 62 clean sheets in that time and will hope to land the Italian top flight title with Napoli before his potential departure this summer.