Viola coach Paulo Sousa wants another defender in the squad and sporting director Daniele Prade has been speaking to the Grifone about the acquisition of the 28-year-old Italo-French defender.
According to Tuttomercatoweb, Genoa are willing to let De Maio go on loan to Fiorentina for €1 million and then the Viola will have to buy him for €4m in the summer.
The Gigliati only want an option to buy instead of a compulsory buy-out clause but both parties are still trying to negotiate a deal.
De Maio’s potential transfer depends a lot on Fiorentina’s chances of recruiting Argentine youngster Emanuel Mammana from River Plate.
Gigliati technical director Valentino Angeloni has flown to Argentina to see if he can strike a deal with Los Millonarios for the 19-year-old.