Man Utd plot swoop for £60m-rated midfielder

Manchester United have their eyes on 17-year-old Rennes star Eduardo Camavinga, according to reports.

Despite his tender years the teenager was not only a regular in Ligue 1 this season but a big influence on his team.

Camavinga is an energetic midfielder who was leading Ligue 1 in tackles when the league was suspended back in March, averaging more than four a game in his 25 appearances (24 starts).

According to the Metro, Real Madrid are in pole position to sign the central midfielder. Zinedine Zidane and the Spanish giants have been investing heavily in youngsters over the past couple of seasons too.

The stumbling block for both Real Madrid and Manchester United is that the French side are insistent on demanding a staggering £60 million for the youngster. Given that he’s only had one season of first team football, without any Champions League nor senior international football, it’s difficult to expect either side will fork out that price. He only has two years left on his contract too so this summer may be their only chance to get a substantial transfer fee.

Whether Rennes will be prepared to accept a lower offer in the coming months remains to be seen, especially given the current climate. According to the report, we’ve scouted Camavinga on more than a dozen occasions over the past year.

The Metro go on to say that we believe £25 million is a more realistic fee and that we’d be prepared to send him back on loan next season. That price would certainly be attractive to Real Madrid also, for whom the youngster may consider the more attractive offer, with Camavinga also sharing the same nationality as their manager.

It’s no secret that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is on the look-out for a holding midfielder but Eduardo Camavinga is at least 12 months away from being a Manchester United starter so it will be interesting to see if we try to negotiate a deal with Rennes this summer or wait another year.