Man Utd target available for nearly half price £27m

Manchester United are likely to be in for a new centre-back this summer as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer searches for a long-term partner for Harry Maguire.

The England international was having an excellent season following his arrival from Leicester City last summer prior to the league’s suspension.

Victor Lindelof had predominantly been Maguire’s partner in the middle of our back four though Eric Bailly also featured, when fit. Phil Jones has barely been used this season whilst Chris Smalling’s career at Old Trafford seems to be over, having been sent out on loan to AS Roma.

We have been linked to a handful of potential signings since the turn of year but one that has been very common is Barcelona fringe defender Samuel Umtiti. Only two months ago Spanish outlet Sport reported that Umtiti would set us back €50 million (£44m).

That was before the COVID-19 pandemic which has caused worldwide disruption with every football league being suspended, bar the Belarusian Premier League. The English Premier League are planning to get the 2019-20 campaign restarted this summer, following in the footsteps of Germany after their top two divisions restarted last weekend.

With all the disruptions, many clubs are facing financial troubles. Manchester United aren’t one of those but Spanish giants FC Barcelona may need to sell some of their fringe players in order to keep up their finances.

As a result, Sport are now reporting that Samuel Umtiti could be available for a cut price €30 million (£27m) – almost half the price quoted just two months ago.

The 2018 World Cup winner has fallen out of favour at Camp Nou and has been linked with a move away from the club for a while now. Arsenal are also being linked with the 26-year-old with Mikel Arteta’s side desperately searching for an upgrade in this role.

Umtiti would be an excellent addition to our squad and a bargain if Sport are accurate with Barcelona’s €30 million valuation of the player. The transfer window is due to to open in the coming weeks so it will be interesting to see if we can get a deal done with the Spanish La Liga champions this summer.