AC Milan Transfer Rumour: Rossoneri Battle Man Utd for Lille's Mathieu Debuchy

AC Milan's latest transfer target appears to have taken them to France, with Lille's Mathieu Debuchy linked with a summer move to Italy. Maxifoot.fr report that a bid of €10 million is being prepared in order to prize away LOSC's defensive stalwart.

The Rossoneri will face competition though, with Manchester United, Bayern Munich and Valencia all reported to have held long-term interest in the right-back. Debuchy has played his entire senior career with Les Dogues, starred in their Ligue 1 triumph last season, the club's first league title in 57 years.

In the knowledge that the club's star man, Edin Hazard, is linked with a move to Europe's biggest clubs this summer, the manager, Rudi Garcia, continues to build his impressive reputation and the emergence of PSG, as a dominant force, mean Lille's recent success could be approaching the end.

The Rossoneri already possess an outstanding right-back, Ignazio Abate, which makes this rumour curious. Luca Antonini, who has been deployed mostly as a left-back, can also operate comfortably in this position.

Allegri, though, has a unique transfer policy, with Urby Emanuelson giving some insight in to the Milan manager's thinking behind targeting Debuchy. The Dutchman had played almost his entire career as a left-sided player, but upon moving to Milan, Allegri transformed him in to a left-sided carrilero or a trequartista.

Initially the 25-year-old struggled, but he has eventually flourished, becoming one of the Rossoneri's outstanding players this season. I foresee a similar role at Milan for Debuchy, or should he be deployed in his current role, Ignazio Abate could be transformed in a similar way to Emanuelson, in order to accommodate both players in the same side.

A transfer fee of €10 million has been mooted, which should not deter the Rossoneri, especially as Silvio Berlusconi has shown a desire to partake a more prominent role within the club again. Allegri is approaching his third season in charge of Milan and this summer's transfer activity appears to be crucial in the club's desire to assemble a side capable of winning an eighth European crown.

Jack Alexandros is a football analyst for Football Radar, covering Serie A. You can follow him on Twitter, @jackalexandros and @FRcalcioJack.