Manchester United will be looking for a new striker before the start of next season as Zlatan Ibrahimovic is now 36 and has been hindered by injuries all season.
The Swede’s contract also expires at the end of June and the football legend is expected to take up an offer from either a Major League Soccer or Chinese Super League club.
Ibrahimovic is currently sidelined following a setback in his recovery from a cruciate ligament injury and is not expected to be back in first team content until February at the earliest.
According to Yahoo!, Torino striker Andrea Belotti tops Jose Mourinho’s shortlist of potential replacements.
The Italian international was linked with a move to us this past summer, before we landed Romelu Lukaku from Everton. The reports linking the 24-year-old to Old Trafford quickly died down after, and no offers were made.
It has been reported in that past that Belotti has a €100 million (£88m) buy-out clause in his contract and that the Serie A side would not be prepared to sell for any lower.
The report in Yahoo! has quoted Torino president Urbano Cairo from earlier this week, saying:
“It’s the market that dictates the prices. If Coutinho is sold for €160m then perhaps, if Belotti goes back to doing what he usually does, [his release clause] will be low.”
Andrea Belotti had a breakout season with Torino in 2016-17 by scoring 26 Serie A goals in 35 appearances, and adding seven assists. In 15 games this season though he only has four goals and has not recorded a single assist, making many wonder if he was only a one season wonder.
Regardless, we are believed to be considering a summer move for the Torino hitman. Let’s hope common sense prevails and that we don’t pay an absurd fee for a player who has not proven himself beyond one season nor played Champions League football.
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