'Huge bids' made for Chelsea and Liverpool target Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, agent confirms

The agent of Lazio midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic claims his client has been the subject of bids worth in excess of €50m (£43.9m, $56.9m) this summer, with Premier League duo Chelsea and Liverpool among a throng of clubs said to be currently chasing his signature.

Milinkovic-Savic enjoyed an impressive second campaign at the Stadio Olimpico in 2016-17, scoring seven goals and providing 10 assists in 39 appearances as Simone Inzaghi's side recovered from the surprise departure of Marco Bielsa to finish fifth in Serie A and reach the final of the Coppa Italia.

Such an encouraging season has led to no shortage of interest from England, with Corriere dello Sport reporting earlier in June that Lazio had placed a £62m valuation on the Spanish-born Serbian Under-21 international in order to ward off suitors after rejecting an initial offer from Liverpool worth £24m.

The Sun claimed in May that Antonio Conte was targeting Milinkovic-Savic as a replacement for Manchester United-bound Nemanja Matic and that the presence of former Chelsea striker Mateja Kezman as his agent potentially gave the champions a slight advantage over Arsenal and the Red Devils.

Juventus have also been linked with a move for a player who is under contract at Lazio until 2022 after agreeing to extend his existing deal by an additional two years in April. However, Kezman insists that his compatriot will continue his fledgling career in Rome despite some sizeable offers for his services.

"I've received huge bids, over €50m in the past few weeks," he told CalcioMercato. "As we agreed at the start of Sergej's contract though, he's not for sale this summer. He's very happy at Lazio and wants to help the team fight for a place in the Champions League next season.

"After that, you can never 100 per cent know what will happen in life... We're in no rush, the lad is happy at Lazio, he's growing and Inzaghi is doing good things with him. He's only 22 and next year we're expecting to do great things with the Biancocelesti."

Chelsea are set to sign highly-rated French midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko from AS Monaco before sanctioning the exit of Matic to Old Trafford. Liverpool, meanwhile, are reportedly ready to make a club-record bid of £70m to entice RB Leipzig into parting ways with Naby Keita as Jurgen Klopp seeks to strengthen his midfield ahead of an imminent return to the Champions League.