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Manchester United stance on Christopher Nkunku amid Chelsea interest in Alejandro Garnacho

Christopher Nkunku has not set the world alight at Chelsea and has not played in more than two months due to injury.

Nkunku has not cut it at Chelsea

Nkunku has not cut it at Chelsea

Christopher Nkunku is not one of Manchester United's prime targets for the centre forward role amid Chelsea's interest in Alejandro Garnacho.

Chelsea considered bidding for Garnacho in the winter transfer window when a potential swap deal involving Nkunku was first floated with United in the market for a forward.

Sources believe Chelsea are again attempting to create a market for Garnacho, who is set to leave after five years in Manchester. United did not move for Nkunku in the mid-season window as they refused to settle for a short-term fix.

With Garnacho now free to leave after crossing United coach Ruben Amorim, Chelsea have raised the possibility of a swap again but United have other players under consideration ahead of Nkunku.

United have submitted an improved offer in excess of £60million for Brentford winger Bryan Mbeumo and are intent on recruiting a striker after Liam Delap opted to join Chelsea.

Sporting striker Viktor Gyokeres and Hugo Ekitike of Eintracht Frankfurt are two frontmen under consideration by United, who want to jettison up to five forwards.

Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Antony are available for transfer after heading out on loan last season while Inter Milan have also enquired about Rasmus Hojlund.

Nkunku, 27, is not an out-and-out striker and started 22 games for Chelsea last season, with only nine coming in the Premier League. He also lost his place in the France squad this year and has not played in more than two months due to injury.

Garnacho's representatives, Carlos Cambeiro and Enrique de Lucas, attended a Chelsea match in January as the Europa Conference League winners weighed up making an offer for the winger.

De Lucas played for Chelsea in 2002-03.

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