Atletico Madrid are set to sign Matteo Ruggeri from Atalanta to be their new starting left-back, with Reinildo Mandava set to depart and Javi Galan likely to be demoted to backup after a string of underwhelming performances. But the 22-year-old was not the primary target for the position, with Theo Hernandez and Andy Robertson having been considered before him.
Hernandez had been the club’s first-choice option, with their interest having been established earlier this month. But after multiple offers were submitted that failed to reach Milan’s asking price, Atleti pulled out of the race to sign the France international, who is now expected to sign for Al Hilal.
And according to Marca, among the reasons that Atleti had for not pursuing Hernandez further was due to backlash from the club’s supporters.
It must be remembered that Hernandez came from the ranks at Atleti alongside brother Lucas Hernandez. He was at the club until 2017, when he infamous chose to sign for Real Madrid, whom he was with for only two years before Milan swooped to sign him.
That episode left a very bad taste in the mouth of Atleti, and especially their fanbase. There were negative reactions when it was reported that Los Colchoneros had Hernandez as a target for this summer, and fearing more to come if a deal was done, it was decided that it would be best to consider other targets.
Hopefully, this was not the only reason that Atleti had. It is likely that Milan’s asking price of €30m was also a stumbling block, especially since Ruggeri – who is five years younger – is being signed for €10m less.
Atleti have been busy over the last week on the transfer front. As well as Ruggeri, they are also expected to close deals for Johnny Cardoso and Alex Baena.
