Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim will be looking for arrivals to come through the Old Trafford door as quickly as possible after he suffered back-to-back defeats in the Premier League - and one star who is in his sights is Martin Baturina from Croatian outfit Dinamo Zagreb, with reports stating that the Red Devils are in the race to appoint the youngster.
Baturina, born in Switzerland, made his debut back in May 2021 as an 18-year-old, and has since gone from strength to strength in Croatia - so much so, that he has picked up nine caps for his country, scoring once in the process. Clubs across Europe have taken an interest in the 'elite star' and that has seen United reportedly enter the race for his signature to help Amorim out.
Report: Man Utd Keen On Martin Baturina
The youngster has an impressive number of elite sides after his signature
Croatia's Martin Baturina celebrates scoring their first goal vs England U21s
The report from CaughtOffside states that United are amongst the Premier League clubs who have taken a keen interest in signing Baturina from Dinamo Zagreb - although Paris Saint-Germain have already held talks over a potential deal. The French club have been working on signing the young star for around €25million (£21million), and they want to get any deal done as ‘quickly as possible’ in the same ilk as they did with Leny Yoro by forcing a deal through ahead of their competitors; though Zagreb are ‘adamant’ that their star is not for sale.
Martin Baturina's Croatian top-flight statistics - Zagreb, apps and goals by season
Season
2020-21
2021-22
2022-23
2023-24
2024-25
The 21-year-old playmaker has, however, also attracted interest from elsewhere. In Spain, the three main clubs of Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid have registered their interest - and closer to home, the report has touted Manchester City and Liverpool with a move for the Croatian.
It remains to be seen if any side can propose an agreement that can be reached with Zagreb, though with the profile of the clubs interested in his signing, it’s tough to imagine them keeping the youngster much longer with such an impressive cohort of teams gunning for his signature.
The report further states that it would be ‘exciting’ to see Baturina move to the Premier League, and he could be the perfect profile of player for Amorim to build his new-look side around, with Amorim’s ‘wide forward’ positions in need of strengthening - given the struggles of Antony in recent times.
Leeds United were also linked with Baturina at the end of the summer transfer window, but they couldn't get a deal over the line late on.
Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim smiles and waves to the crowd Related
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Statistics courtesy of WhoScored. Correct as of 09-12-24.