Inter
Milan officials have held talks with Olivier Giroud's agents and agreed
terms for a January transfer, Sky in Italy are reporting.
The France striker, whose Blues deal expires in the summer, has agreed a
two-and-a-half year contract to join the Italian side.
However, Inter have yet to agree a deal with Chelsea, who are asking for
between £6.8m (€8m) and £8.5m (€10m).
Inter do not want to spend more than £4.3m (€5m) and Giroud has other offers
on the table, including one from Lyon, but he is keen to move to Inter.
Giroud has not featured for Chelsea since the end of November, with Tammy
Abraham the clear No 1 striker at Stamford Bridge since the arrival of Frank
Lampard as manager.
The 33-year-old has scored 19 goals since joining Chelsea in January 2018,
although only five have come in the league where the majority of his
appearances have been as a substitute.
He has only made five Premier League appearances this season, with four of
his five goals for the campaign coming while on international duty and the
fifth in the European Super Cup against Liverpool.
A move to Inter would reunite Giroud with Antonio Conte, who initially
signed him for Chelsea after his five-and-a-half season spell with London
rivals Arsenal.
Sky Sports has also learned that Aston Villa made an approach to Chelsea to
take Giroud on loan for the rest of the season, but Giroud's preference is
to link up with Conte rather than join a relegation battle with Villa in the
Premier League.
Competition rules dictate that only one loan is allowed between the same two
Premier League clubs, and with the Giroud deal looking unlikely, Villa opted
for midfielder Danny Drinkwater instead.
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