AFC Bournemouth close in on £18 million deal for Milos Kerkez | OneFootball

AFC Bournemouth are closing in on a deal for AZ Alkmaar left-back Milos Kerkez, according to the Daily Mail.

The Cherries have been showing interest in the teenage starlet and are close to agreeing to an £18 million transfer to sign their man.

Kerkez had interest from Benfica, who needed a replacement for Alejandro Grimaldo. However, they pulled out of the race after signing David Jurasek.

Lazio also considered a move for Kerkez but could not sign him. Kerkez is now close to joining Bournemouth and comes with plenty of positives.

The Hungarian is a rapid full-back who can attack the opposition’s box.

The 19-year-old bagged three goals and one assist in 33 Eredivisie appearances last season. He helped them keep six clean sheets and won 57% of his duels.

Kerkez scored two more and assisted another three in the Europa Conference League.

He also became a Hungary international, earning eight caps since debuting last year.

The Serbia-born defender reportedly models his game on Alphonso Davies and former teammate Theo Hernandez.

Kerkez was at AC Milan but struggled to breakthrough with the Frenchman ahead of him in the pecking order. He left for the Netherlands in search of game time.

Former Milan defender and arguably the best left-back of all time, Paolo Maldini, signed Kerkez as a 17-year-old, signalling his faith in the player’s promising talents.

Bournemouth are also readying another bid for Bristol City’s Alex Scott. City rejected their first offer for the Championship Young Player of the Season.