Manchester United have decided to press ahead with a move for Red Bull Leipzig defender Dayot Upamecano next summer.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was keen on strengthening his central defence in the summer transfer window but Upamecano signed a new deal with the Bundesliga club to remove a £45million release clause in his contract.
However, while that strengthened Leipzig’s desire to keep Upamecano last summer, the new contract actually includes a lower release clause of around £38m which will become active in 2021.
United will have no problem activating that release clause and the Times claim that the club have decided to do so next summer.
However, United will likely face strong competition from across Europe for the defender’s signature as he’s considered the finest young centre-back in the world.
United have six centre-backs in their squad but Solskjaer only considers Harry Maguire to be a certain starter and he dropped Victor Lindelof for the recent 6-1 defeat to Spurs at Old Trafford.
Eric Bailly failed to impress during his opportunity in the loss and the Ivorian has since suffered an injury that will keep him out for a month.
It’s likely United will look to cash in on the former Villarreal man next summer, while Phil Jones and Marcos Rojo have chance of a long-term future at the club.
Axel Tuanzebe is viewed as a future captain by Solskjaer but the 22-year-old has managed just one match in the last 10 months and his injury record means United cannot rely on him just yet.
