Man Utd ‘activate’ £12.5m emergency signing after Martinez suffers ‘serious’ injury
Man Utd have reportedly ‘activated’ their interest in signing Barcelona centre-back Andreas Christensen before the transfer deadline after Lisandro Martinez picked up an injury on Sunday.
The Red Devils continued their awful season on Sunday with a 2-0 loss at home to Crystal Palace which marked their 11th defeat in 24 matches in the Premier League.
That result sees them drop to 13th in the Premier League table after the weekend’s results and they are now 12 points off fourth-placed Man City, who occupy the final Champions League spot, and the same amount of points away from the relegation zone.
To make matters worse, Argentina international Martinez was taken off with an injury, which Man Utd boss Amorim described as “serious” after the match.
Amorim told Sky Sports: “We are going to see in the next days but I think it’s a serious situation. Not just a great player but a strong character in the dressing room.
“In this moment, it’s hard on us, but now it’s time for us to help Licha, like he helps us every day. When you are a player, you know when it’s serious.
“Let’s hope for better days for him and we are here like I said to help him in this difficult moment.”
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And now Man Utd could enter the market on deadline day for a new centre-back with reports in Spain claiming that Amorim ‘aims for Barca after Lisandro Martínez’s injury and activates the signing’.
The Martinez injury is said to be a ‘major setback which has forced the English club to look for a last-minute reinforcement before the close of the winter transfer market.’
Former Chelsea defender Christensen has ’emerged as one of the most interesting options’ for Man Utd with Amorim believing ‘that his profile would fit perfectly into his defensive scheme’.
The Denmark international ‘could seriously consider the possibility of a change of scenery’ and Amorim ‘believes that Christensen could bring experience, solvency and stability to a team that has suffered in the defensive area throughout the season’.
Barcelona are ‘open to his departure if a good offer arrives’ with reports previously claiming they would accept around €15m (£12.5m) as the Catalan giants ‘still needs income to balance its accounts’.
And it’s claimed that if Man Utd ‘makes an interesting offer, Barca could give the green light to the operation’ and ‘negotiations would have to be accelerated in the next few hours so that the operation could be completed before the deadline.’
The report ends: ‘What is clear is that Rúben Amorim has activated interest in Christensen , and now everything will depend on whether Manchester United are willing to present a convincing offer in this final stretch of the market.’
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