The mass pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia this summer looks to receive another top footballing name into the queue as Roshn Saudi League giants Al-Hilal are closing on a shock deal for Italian international star Marco Verratti.
Al-Za’eem, the 18-time champions, have already spent €118m as part of the PIF-backed market aggression shown by the top flight of Saudi Arabian football that has poached a growing number of stars away from the pinnacle of the European game
According to football insider Fabrizio Romano, a deal is said to be in the advanced stages of negotiations with Al-Hilal on the cusp of agreeing to terms with French giants Paris Saint-Germain for the 30-year-old Pescara-born key international midfielder.
Verratti would be signing on to a reported three-year contract at King Fahd International Stadium and would constitute the third piece of a very credible midfield triumvirate alongside fellow summer signings Rúben Neves and Sergej Milinković-Savić, with Senegalese star defender Kalidou Koulibaly having also arrived at the club from Chelsea.
Since his arrival at PSG from hometown club Pescara in 2012 after coming through the academy ranks in Abruzzo, Verratti has made over 400 appearances for the Parisians while also becoming a vital cog in the wheel for the senior Italian national side, earning a combined 30 major club honors as well as helping Italy to a Euro 2020 crown.
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