Nicolò Zaniolo’s agent revealed that there were talks with AC Milan before he joined Aston Villa and that Galatasaray helped get the deal completed.

Zaniolo, 23, joined Aston Villa on loan from Galatasaray on Saturday for €5m plus bonuses with an option to buy for €22.5m plus another €15.5m in add-ons.

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His agent, Claudio Vigorelli, has confirmed that there were also talks with AC Milan before the move to Villa.

However, the negotiations broke down after Paolo Maldini and Ricky Massara were fired as the club’s sporting directors on June 5.

“When this opportunity came along with Aston Villa and Monchi, we worked with Galatasaray. It was tough to convince them, but it is the dream of every player to go to the Premier League,” agent Claudio Vigorelli told Radio Sportiva.

“This was a big opportunity. I thank Galatasaray for helping a complicated transfer go through.”

Maldini was the director in charge of Milan transfers and was a big fan of Zaniolo.

He had been working on a deal to bring the Italian international to the club before he was dismissed.

It is unclear whether the new sporting directors, Geoffrey Moncada and Ivan Gazidis, will continue to pursue Zaniolo.

Vigorelli has said that there is still interest from Milan in the player.

However, it seems that Aston Villa were the only club that were able to agree a deal with Galatasaray.

“It was only with Paolo Maldini and Milan that there were some talks. Things were going towards a positive conclusion, but then everything changed for their directors and it was not picked up again after that,” he added.

“Nicolò would also have been happy to remain in Turkey, as he was thinking about the Champions League, but then Aston Villa came along.”

The move to Villa is a good opportunity for Zaniolo to play regular football in the Premier League.