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AC Milan technical director Paolo Maldini has said Fikayo Tomori’s loan transfer to Chelsea is near but could still fail.
The two clubs are set to close a loan deal with a £ 25million option to buy.
Milan followed the 23-year-old, with Strasbourg defender Mohamed Simakan their initial main focus.
But with Simakan out for around two months as he needs surgery, the Serie A club have stepped up efforts to secure a loan from Tomori in this window.
Asked at the stage of the talks, Maldini said: “It’s very close, we are between confirming his signing and not signing him at all, everything could fall apart with just one detail.
“We saw in him the quality of throwing him into the mix with our current defenders, which is why we want him.”
Tomori rose through the ranks at Stamford Bridge but has only played 27 times for Chelsea in all competitions since making his first-team debut for them in May 2016.
He went on to have loan spells with Brighton, Hull and Derby and is now set to add Milan to that list.
Chelsea boss Frank Lampard has already confirmed Tomori could be loaned out in the January transfer window after hesitating to let him go this summer as Antonio Rudiger was set to leave the Blues.
Several Premier League clubs have also expressed interest in Tomori.
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AC Milan were among the clubs in search of Tomori’s signing last year, but it was too late for a deal to be reached when it emerged on deadline day that Rudiger would stay.
Lampard was asked on Monday if Tomori’s loan was imminent, he said: “Fikayo is a developing player. In the squad we had four center-backs last year. I can’t play four in a match and you’re trying to find consistency in At one point Fikayo was in that and later not so much.
“This year we have five center-backs. So it’s a tough situation for those who don’t play regularly and that’s why he could be loaned out, for his development.
“He’s a young player. His development has been a huge increase in the last two seasons or so since I’ve been working with him. It will continue and we will find the best path for it.”
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