Manchester United transfer ‘matter of hours’ away after scaled up weekend talks
Manchester United’s signing of Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane is a “matter of hours, days at most” away, according to a couple of sources in Spain.
The France international has been a target for United all summer, and if reports in Spain are accurate, a deal is very much in the offing.
Marca have reported “agreement imminent” for the 28-year-old to sign for the Old Trafford club. And now Deportes Cuatro via Sport Witness also state the prospective deal is “imminent” and his signing is a “matter of hours, days at most” away.
Talks between the two clubs were stepped up over the weekend, per the report. And Varane is understood to have agreed to a deal in principle with United.
That left Madrid with very little option to negotiate a fee with United. Carlo Ancelotti’s side would prefer to sell the centre-back this summer, rather than letting him leave for free in 2022,
The fee is said to be close to €50m with an official announcement expected in the next few days.
Madrid are now looking for a defensive replacement. While the report also suggested Los Blancos are also fixed on bringing Kylian Mbappe to the club.
Spanish journalist Sergio Quirante took to Twitter to report Varane, who was expected to train from 10am on Monday, was the only player missing.
Subscribe for free to TEAMtalk’s daily newsletter…
Kounde talk
However, he later corrected that and confirmed Varane had been seen at Madrid’s training HQ.
Varane will undoubtedly strengthen United’s defensive and alongside Harry Maguire should prove a formidable partnership.
However, the Daily Mail claims they won’t stop there and are also pushing to sign Jules Kounde too.
The 22-year-old Sevilla defender has caught the eye in recent seasons and proven one of LaLiga’s best defenders. That form earned him a place in France’s Euro 2020 squad though he did play only a bit-part role.
Indeed, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is a huge fan and the Mail claims he wants Kounde as well as Varane signed up. They claim United have already seen a bid worth £38m rejected for Kounde.
Sevilla are looking for nearer £56m for their star defender, however.
READ MORE: Man Utd copy Chelsea approach as top star offered to Dortmund in Erling Haaland swap
The post Manchester United transfer ‘matter of hours’ away after scaled up weekend talks appeared first on TEAMtalk.