Manchester United will have to significantly raise their bid if they are to successfully prise Ollie Watkins away from Aston Villa this summer, amid claims a £40m offer would prove enough, though the expected departure of a £36.5m flop has opened the door for a new arrival.
The Red Devils have put a strong emphasis on rebuilding their central midfield this summer. Deals worth a combined £85m for Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans have already been signed off, while Manchester United are meticulously keeping an eye on a variety of options as they look to bring in a third new player for their engine room.
With all the focus on the midfield, it’s easy to forget that Michael Carrick also wants to sign a new centre forward to take some of the burden off Benjamin Sesko’s shoulders.
And with the towering Slovenian currently in recovery mode from a knock he sustained at the back end of last season, United’s fragility in the striker area underlines the need to bring in another option.
Reports last week claimed United were, as a result, ready to explore a move to bring England striker Watkins to Old Trafford this summer.
Those hopes were boosted by claims that Villa were open to the striker’s sale, with Unai Emery ready to spend a club record fee to bring in Nicolas Jackson from Chelsea.
However, any hopes that Villa would green light the 30-year-old’s sale for a fee of around £40m have been rapidly torched, with a new update revealing that the Midlands side will ask for a lot more money if they are to part with the 193-goal striker.
Via the iPaper, United have six targets on their radar, with Watkins just one of the options to fill the striker void.
Their report states that ‘Watkins is another striker United have been monitoring for a while’, though they claim ‘Aston Villa are unlikely to sell for anything like the sort of fee the Red Devils would be willing to pay.’
Watkins is under contract at Villa Park until 2028.
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Zirkzee exit to open door for Man Utd to make striker signing
While the iPaper insists United are in for a new striker, their report backs up previous claims that this will only be possible thanks to the exit of another, with the club likely to operate with a one-in, one-out system for the rest of the window.
‘If Joshua Zirkzee does leave, one source added United could look for an experienced striker to come in on a short-term basis, similar to the role Wout Weghorst fulfilled during his loan spell a few years ago,’ they state.
However, one of those options the club were looking at, in former striker Danny Welbeck, is about to be taken off the list, with the veteran striker on the verge of signing for Chelsea.
A deal to bring the 35-year-old in from Brighton has been agreed, and the striker is now set to complete the formalities of the deal before joining the Blues on their pre-season tour of the Far East.
Another name to keep an eye on, per the report, is Dusan Vlahovic, who is a free agent after his contract with Juventus ended.
Boasting bags of experience at the highest level, Vlahovic has scored 68 goals across 168 appearances for Juve over four and a half seasons in Turin.
Ironically, Juve could replace Vlahovic with Zirkzee in their attack. Talks over the Dutchman’s move to the Allianz Stadium are now gathering pace, with United making it clear the £36.5m signing from Bologna two years ago will be free to leave.
United are even willing to negotiate a loan exit for the Dutchman, as long as it includes an obligation to make the transfer permanent. Juve, for their part, are reportedly more keen on an initial season-long arrangement for the 25-year-old, though would prefer either an option to make permanent or an obligation with more favourable variables.
Another name we understand that continues to be touted is Victor Osimhen, with those close to the Nigerian striker telling our sources that the player is open to an exit from Galatasaray this summer and with United once again touted as a potential option.
Concerning that midfielder hunt, United’s chances of signing Tchouameni for ‘daft money’ have been assessed and with two sources having shared Real Madrid’s transfer strategy.
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