Atletico Madrid's Marcos Llorente close to leaving for Saudi Arabia

Diego Pablo Simeone is close to losing one os his key players. Saudi Arabian League's Al Ahli would be ready to put money on the table to get the Spanish midfielder out of Atletico Madrid.

This is according to the prestigious British newspaper 'The Athletic'. According to its journalist Gregg Evans, Al-Ahli have already entered into talks to sign the Madrid-born player and the positions are close. The price of Llorente's transfer to Arabia would be around 23 million euros, an amount that seems to be enough to convince the 'Colchoneros'.

Despite the figures being bandied about, Atletico's difficult economic situation makes this offer a market opportunity. A few weeks ago, 'Marca' already published that the board had not declared the former Madrid man as non-transferable. If a good offer arrived, they were ready to listen to it. And the one from Al-Ahli seems to be so.

However, Llorente is a difficult player to be replaced. 'Los Rojiblancos' had reinforced their defence, occupying the right-hand side with Cesar Azpilicueta and the already present Nahuel Molina, which would facilitate the return of Llorente to the midfield, where he helped to improve the 'Colchoneros' performance in the second half of the season.

The 28-year-old Llorente is currently under contract with Atletico Madrid until 30th June 2027. His intention all along has been to continue at the Civitas Metropolitano side despite offers coming in, but it seems the player may have changed his mind.

August 2, 2023