AC Milan ahead of Juventus in race for Verratti, says Pescara director

Posted Saturday, May 26, 2012 by Goal.com

Pescara sporting director Daniele Delli Carri has revealed that AC Milan are ahead of Juventus in the race to sign Marco Verratti and that the midfielder is also attracting interest from England, Germany and Spain.

The 19-year-old playmaker has already stated that he would like to remain at the Adriatico for another year but that if he does leave this summer, his preference would be to move to Turin.

However, Delli Carri has explained that Juve, for so long considered the favourites to sign Verratti, are no longer in pole position to secure the services of 'the new Andrea Pirlo'.

“There are several clubs ahead of Juventus, including Milan,” Delli Carri revealed in an interview with Tuttojuve.com.

“I don’t want to name the other sides, but there are some foreign ones too from the Premier League, La Liga and Bundesliga.

“The Bianconeri want to sign the player, but the last approach from them was two months ago. There haven’t been any other calls since then.

“Verratti has always said he is a Juventus supporter and his intentions will of course be taken into consideration, but let’s remember we are not talking about a 28-year-old who can afford to accept Juve and turn down Inter or Milan, for example.

“He is 19 and is not in that position. I would like to underline that Pescara want to keep Verratti with us next season, too.”

Verratti, who played an integral role in Pescara's promotion to Serie A, has been included in Italy's provisional squad for Euro 2012.