Manchester United, along with the rest of most global football, are off indefinitely, but there are still plenty of transfer rumors related to the club, circulating on the internet today. There is a plan for the Premier League to potentially return to action on June 13, and play matches behind closed doors in neutral venues.
The first phases of so-called “Project Restart” are underway, but there are of course, lots of obstacles to be overcome, and a whole lot could change between now at the time targeted for starting up again. The next meeting, on May 8, will be extremely critical, and we’ll know more then.
In the meantime, please check out our all United transfer rumor starting XI and our optimal United XI with top transfer targets acquired and key players retained.
For today’s United news and notes round-up go here.
Today we start with an item on Sunderland’s young striker, 16-year-old striker Joe Hugill, who is wanted by both Tottenham and United, with the latter said to be in pole position.
That’s according to The Sun, who say that a deal can be struck for a six figure fee. The article then pivots to a discussion about another 16-year-old Championship side player that United are keen on, Jude Bellingham. United haven’t been able to secure his signature, but are reportedly leading the way.
Elsewhere, Napoli central defender Kalidou Koulibaly has been on United’s radar for a very long time, and he represents a a huge potential upgrade over Victor Lindelof.
Yes, he would be a very expensive acquisition (in the neighborhood of $130 million), but that’s what a top notch centre back costs these days. He might fetch even more on the open market, with Liverpool now said to be keen, according to Tutto Mercato in Italy.
Debatable whether or not United would spend that kind of money again on a centre half, having broken the transfer fee record for a defender on Harry Maguire just last summer.
And finally, in today’s edition of “Is Paul Pogba Going/Staying?” it sounds like Real Madrid are not really seriously interested. That’s because their offer was only for the cut rate price of £70 million, according to the Mirror.
Sure, this will be a very unusual summer transfer window, with spending down across the board, or says United CEO Ed Woodward. But that price is a bit insulting, especially with other clubs in the mix to acquire the French superstar.
Inter Milan have joined Juventus as Serie A sides in the race to obtain the midfielder. La Gazzetta dello Sport reporting the Nerazzurri are keen on him this summer.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly contributes to WGN TV, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Now and SB Nation.
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