Man Utd ‘had £85.5m bid for Milinkovic-Savic rejected by Lazio’ before midfielder left for just £34m to Saudi Arabia

MANCHESTER UNITED had an £85.5million bid for Sergej Milinkovic-Savic rejected by Lazio, it has been revealed.

The midfielder had long been on United’s radar but in the summer he left Italy for the Saudi Pro League, joining Al-Hilal for £34m.

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Sergej Milinkovic-Savic now plays for Al Hilal[/caption]

Former Lazio sporting director Igli Tare has now spoken out to confirm United and AC Milan both bid for Milinkovic-Savic.

But he denied that the player was let go by the Serie A giants.

He told TV Play: “Many things have been said about Milinkovic-Savic that are not true, from losing him as a free agent to the idea he didn’t want to stay.

“The only true thing is that President Claudio Lotito rejected a very important offer, worth over €100m (£85.5m), from Milan and Manchester United.

“I don’t want to get into why the sale did not go through, as Lotito wanted to maintain a strong squad and keep the promises he had made to the coach.

“Let us not forget that the season which was interrupted by COVID, Lazio were on the verge of winning the Scudetto.”

Milinkovic-Savic, 28, has nine goals in his 22 appearances for Al-Hilal, where plays alongside Neymar and Aleksandar Mitrovic.

But recent reports link Milinkovic-Savic with an exit from Saudi already.

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According to Italian outlet, Il Messaggero, the Serbian told his former Lazio team-mates that he would “like to return” to the club.

It would add him to a growing list of players who want to make their way back to Europe.

SunSport reported in October how a number of stars were unhappy after leaving European football, and now a mass of this talent want out.

England international Jordan Henderson was one such star.

Henderson, 33, sealed a transfer to Ajax just six months after signing a bumper £700,000-a-week contract for Steven Gerrard’s Al-Ettifaq from Liverpool.

Meanwhile, Karim Benzema is said to have left Saudi chiefs furious after reportedly arriving 17 DAYS late for Al-Ittihad training.

Elsewhere, Jota has been linked with a transfer to the Premier League after he was not registered in his sides squad.