Sporting Lisbon striker Viktor Gyokeres is very much “open to joining Manchester United” if his transfer to Arsenal does not materialise, according to journalist Ben Jacobs.
Speaking on The United Stand YouTube channel, Jacobs said that the Swedish international would be prepared to make the switch to Old Trafford, but the likelihood of the move happening is pretty low at the moment:
“Viktor Gyokeres never said no to Manchester United. He was, still is, if something falls through, open to joining Manchester United without Champions League football. And that’s the part that always gets pulled out of context on social media, and suddenly you get told you’re saying it’s advancing, but Gyokeres indicating that, never meant that Manchester United made an approach to Sporting.”
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“So we’ve never had yet a Manchester United conversation with Sporting. No bid. It’s never advanced further than the player camp simply saying, if Arsenal doesn’t come off, we would also be open to Manchester United. And the ball has always been in Manchester United’s court and they’ve not escalated that to any kind of club-to-club talks. So, it’s never been anything to get over excited about other than the fact that if this Arsenal deal doesn’t come off, Gyokeres wants to move to the Premier League and remains open to Manchester United.”
What is the latest on Gyokeres’s move to Arsenal?
Sporting are standing firm on their asking price, which is €80m (£69m), including add-ons. They are believed to be demanding €70m (£60m) up front, with the rest dependent on performance-related bonuses.
Arsenal are thought to have made an opening bid worth an initial €65m (£56m), so the two sides are not too far apart, but talks have not progressed for several days.
Man United will need to offload a forward first
In order to fund any approach for a new No.9, it is believed that the Red Devils would have to raise funds by selling a first-team player.
Marcus Rashford, Antony and Alejandro Garnacho are the prime candidates as they have all been made available for transfer but Jacobs suggests that Rasmus Hojlund could also be sacrificed.
At the moment, the Danish international is said to be looking to stay, but he does have interest from several clubs in Italy. It is definitely a story to keep a close eye on.
In other news, Fabrizio Romano has confirmed Man United are interested in a £52m rated midfielder