Milan's Summer Rebuild: Mendes Targets Ruben Dias
Jorge Mendes is back at the centre of Milan’s summer rebuild, and this time the target is one of the most prized centre-backs in Europe: Ruben Dias.
According to Sport Mediaset, the Portuguese super agent is exploring a sensational swap that would send Rafael Leao plus a cash fee to Manchester City, with Dias moving the other way to join Milan.
Leao’s future on the table
Milan have been quietly, and now not so quietly, searching for a way out of the Leao dilemma. The winger’s contract runs to 2028, but the market has not responded as the club hoped. The report states that nobody is stepping up to meet the €50m plus add-ons that Milan would like to bring in for the Portugal international.
So Mendes is trying to redraw the picture.
After spending the entire afternoon at Casa Milan, he is said to be working on a proposal that would package Leao to City, topped up with cash from the Rossoneri, to prise Dias away from the Premier League champions.
Mendes’ fingerprints all over Milan’s market
This is not an isolated move. Mendes has effectively become the architect of Milan’s summer.
He helped bring in coach Ruben Amorim, a major shift in identity on the bench. He then facilitated the arrival of striker Goncalo Ramos from Paris Saint-Germain, and now Diego Moreira from RC Strasbourg. Each deal pushes Milan further into a Portuguese-influenced project, tactically and culturally.
A defender of Dias’ profile would be the cornerstone of that evolution.
Why Dias, why now?
Milan have already signed Mario Gila from Lazio to bolster the back line, but Amorim’s football demands defenders who can defend high, dominate duels and build play with authority. Dias fits that description as well as almost anyone.
The Portugal international turned 29 in May and remains under contract at Manchester City until June 2029, having joined from Benfica in a €71.6m deal in 2020. He has been central to City’s domestic and European dominance and, as the report notes, has also been linked with Real Madrid this summer.
That level of interest underlines the scale of what Mendes is trying to pull off. Milan would not simply be buying a defender; they would be landing a statement piece, a leader for Amorim’s new cycle.
Whether City would entertain losing a cornerstone of Pep Guardiola’s defence, even with Leao on the table and money attached, is another matter entirely. But if Mendes can turn this idea into a real negotiation, Milan’s back line – and their ambitions – could look very different by the end of the window.
