Transfer Talk: Man United hoping for price drop to land Sancho

The coronavirus pandemic has made the summer transfer window uncertain, but here are the rumours floating around Europe’s big leagues and beyond.

Man United hoping for price drop to land Sancho

Real Madrid, Manchester City and Liverpool have joined Manchester United in monitoring Jadon Sancho‘s situation at Borussia Dortmund, but the Daily Mail says that United are waiting for his price to drop before making their next move.

United have been favourites to land the in-form English winger all year but they’re now looking to drive down the £100 million price tag.

As yet, there have been no formal bids for the winger, and the Mail believe United will play a waiting game in an effort to land their no.1 target.

United chief Ed Woodward has warned that the Reds don’t have a bottomless pit of money to spend this summer and that any future signings need to be ‘realistic’.

Real Madrid would appear to favour a move for Kai Havertz while Liverpool have also stated it’s unlikely they won’t be making any major signings. Manchester City, meanwhile, have stated a central defender is their top priority, with Pep Guardiola even admitting it’s unlikely he would look to replace the outgoing Leroy Sane. All of which leaves Manchester United in pole position.

Arsenal keen on Mikhitaryan-Kluivert swap

The Daily Star reports that Arsenal are hoping agent Mino Raiola can negotiate a deal with AS Roma that would see Henrikh Mkhitaryan make his loan move permanent, with Justin Kluivert moving in the opposite direction to London.

Raiola represents both players, and Roma would appear keen to keep Mkhitaryan after the Armenian’s successful loan spell this season.

However, Roma are said to be unwilling to do a straight swap, a result of the Italian board valuing Kluivert greater than Mkhitaryan, which would mean the two clubs needing to agree a fee.

The Gunners are desperate to overhaul their failing squad this summer and Kluivert represents one player who they feel would enhance their attacking powers next season.

Mikel Arteta doesn’t have a huge transfer fund at his disposal, so a swap with a nominal fee could be the way forward, though his funds may be boosted if he decides to sell players such as Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Barca desperate to offload Coutinho

Barcelona are keen to get Philippe Coutinho off their wage bill this summer, but it’s his wages that are proving difficult when it comes to offloading him, reports the Mirror.

Liverpool are continually linked as one club who could sign him, the Brazilian leaving Merseyside to join Barca in 2018. However, the Reds have repeatedly stated that they’re not interested, while their failure to sign Timo Werner suggests that they don’t have a huge amount to spend this summer because of the uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus.

Coutinho is a victim of the new landscape following the global pandemic in which few clubs have huge amounts of money to spend.

Barcelona are even said to be willing to drop his asking price from £100m to £63m in an effort to make space for their own potential new signings.

Tap-ins

– Paris Saint-Germain are keen to take Lucas Hernandez to the French capital this summer to replace the outgoing Thiago Silva, but Le10sports suggests Bayern Munich appear reluctant to do business. PSG sporting director Leonardo has seen something in the defender despite his disappointing season at Bayern, while the player himself is keen on the move. Bayern are keen to recoup €80m for the defender, but they’re less keen to deal with PSG, who they see as a major European rival.

– Further to Repubblica’s suggestion that Arthur is keen to move to Juventus, Sport is reporting that the Italian club are increasingly desperate to land the Brazil international in any potential swap deal involving Miralem Pjanic. Juventus and Barcelona have been in discussions all summer about a potential deal involving Pjanic, and while Sport are suggesting that the two clubs have come to an agreement, it’s now down to the players to agree on the move.