Deulofeu lands in Italy ahead of AC Milan move

Gerard Deulofeu has arrived in Italy to finalise a transfer to AC Milan from Everton.

The 22-year-old winger touched down at Malpensa airport on Sunday, where he was met by Rossoneri director Rocco Maiorino.

The former Barcelona man is expected to complete a medical on Monday ahead of completing an initial loan move to San Siro.

“I am very happy to be here,” he told the assembled media at the airport. “I chose Milan because it’s a great club.”

Asked if he is excited to link up with former Spain Under-21 team-mate Suso, he added: “Yes, of course.”

Milan posted a tweet on Friday welcoming the arrival of Deulofeu, but it was later deleted and no confirmation over the transfer followed.

Reports in England have claimed that Everton took a complaint directly to Milan, insisting that any agreement had yet to be ratified.

Speaking ahead of Milan’s defeat to Napoli on Saturday, CEO Adriano Galliani confirmed that talks were ongoing, though he would not speculate on whether a satisfactory conclusion would be reached.

Everton manager Ronald Koeman stated this week that he would not stand in the way of a move for Deulofeu, who is eager for first-team football, having not played in the Premier League since the 3-2 defeat to Watford on December 10.