Man Utd have ‘advantage’ in race for long-term target amid claim he’s ‘inclined’ to accept ‘offer’
According to reports, Manchester United have an ‘advantage’ in the race to sign France international Adrien Rabiot from Serie A giants Juventus.
The centre-midfielder has been heavily linked with Man Utd and other Premier League clubs over the past couple of seasons.
He initially looked likely to become a free agent during last summer’s transfer window but he ended up committing his future to the Serie A giants for one more season.
Reports linking Rabiot with a move elsewhere are not going away as he is in the same situation as last season with his contract about to expire.
It was recently claimed that Tottenham have joined the race to sign Rabiot but transfer expert Fabrizio Romano insisted that there are no “concrete contacts” between the Premier League club and the midfielder.
“People at Spurs are monitoring midfielders in general and Adrien Rabiot could be a big opportunity for many clubs. Still, I’m not aware of concrete contacts between Tottenham and Rabiot for now,” Romano told Caught Offside.
He added: “From what I heard, Rabiot will also give priority to talks with Juventus over a new deal before deciding his future.”
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Man Utd to finally sign Rabiot?
The Red Devils are going to be busy during this summer’s transfer window as they arguably need to improve in most positions.
The addition of a new centre-midfielder is likely with Casemiro and Sofyan Amrabat likely to leave and it was claimed earlier this month that Rabiot would be ‘more inclined’ to accept an ‘offer’ from Man Utd if Max Allegri leaves Juventus.
A report from Italian outlet Calciomercato (via Sport Witness) claims Rabiot’s performances this season are ‘far from’ the levels he reached last term and he’s ‘regressed physically and temperamentally’.
Despite this, Man Utd appear to be moving ahead with the process of signing Rabiot as they have carried out the ‘first polls’ to land him.
Regarding Man Utd’s supposed ‘advantage’, the report adds: ‘He finds a move to the Premier League to be attractive.
‘This, coupled with his renewal being frozen, would give the Red Devils an advantage to try and secure his services in the next window.’
Man Utd are also likely to be in the market for a new centre-back and Romano claims they have been “scouting” Edmond Tapsoba.
“Scouts from three top clubs were in attendance to watch Edmond Tapsoba in yesterday’s game for Bayer Leverkusen away to Borussia Dortmund. The centre-back looks like he could be one to watch for this summer as he’s attracting interest, though it’s still early in this story,” Romano revealed in his daily briefing column.
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“As I previously reported, Manchester United want a centre-back this summer and they’re one of the clubs who’ve previously looked at Tapsoba.
“They’ve been scouting Tapsoba for a long time, but they also have a long list of names, as previously mentioned, such as Jean-Clair Todibo, Antonio Silva, Gleison Bremer and Jarrad Branthwaite.
“Tottenham also showed an interest in Tapsoba in the past, but let’s see if they enter the running again. Bayer Leverkusen have not decided a specific price yet.”
