Shakhtar Donetsk forward Douglas Costa has revealed his dream of following in the footsteps of his idol, Ronaldinho, by joining AC Milan.
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Costa arrived in Italy on Tuesday where Shakhtar will spend the next few days preparing for the new Ukrainian season, starting with a 1-1 friendly draw with Hellas Verona on Tuesday night.
If he were to be given the choice, however, the 23-year-old would not return to Ukraine at the end of the week, although not necessarily because of the problems in the war torn country. The Brazilian wants to stay and prove he is good enough to play in Serie A, with Milan.
"If I were to receive an offer, I'd take it straight away," Costa told La Gazzetta dello Sport. "I'm grateful to Shakhtar for all they have given me and, if I do stay, I will continue to give 100 percent, but I think I am now ready for a big club."
Few other teams would be as appealing as the Rossoneri, though, for Costa.
"Who wouldn't like to follow in the footsteps of the great 'Dinho'?" he added. "He's my idol. I grew up at Gremio and I got to know him. I was great friends with his nephew and often went to his house."
Douglas Costa is not the only forward Milan are targetting, though, with a move for Torino's Alessio Cerci beginning to take shape. General manager Adriano Galliani met with Torino president Urbano Cairo on Tuesday to thrash out a deal for the Italy international.
The two clubs appear to be getting closer in their respective valuations of the 27-year-old, even if La Gazzetta reports that six million euros is still separating them. Extra payments due on appearances and achievements, or the inclusion of several youth players, could lead the negotiations to a successful conclusion in time for the start of the Serie A season at the end of the month.