Man Utd hold ‘contacts’ over deal for 17-goal striker as Ten Hag looks to ease pressure on Hojlund

Premier League giants Manchester United held talks to sign Serhou Guirassy from Stuttgart on Tuesday, according to a report.

Guirassy permanently joined Stuttgart from French outfit Rennes in the summer for a fee in the region of £7.7million after spending 2022/23 on loan in Germany.

The Guinean was impressive in front of goal last season, netting 14 goals in 28 appearances for the Bundesliga side.

He has been outstanding this term, however, surpassing last season’s goal tally in October.

Guirassy now has 17 goals in 12 matches in 23/24 and his form has caught the eye of several Premier League clubs.

Transfer gossip: Man Utd among trio eyeing Milan keeper as Newcastle rival Red Devils for striker

The 27-year-old reportedly has a £15m release clause in his contract, which has unsurprisingly led to plenty of transfer stories.

Newcastle United, Fulham and Manchester United are three of the English clubs believed to be interested in landing the Stuttgart star in the winter transfer window.

And according to Italian outlet TuttoMercatoWeb (via Sport Witness), the Red Devils have held ‘contacts’ over the signing of Guirassy ‘in the last few hours’.

United are said to be rivalling AC Milan for the player’s signature with Erik ten Hag hopeful of easing the pressure on summer signing Rasmus Hojlund, who is yet to register a goal contribution in the Premier League.

Speaking on Kick on Tuesday evening, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano said he expects Milan to sign a new striker when the transfer window re-opens next month.

In regards to United’s interest, it is unclear what the nature of these ‘contacts’ are with their winter window plans not set in stone at this moment in time.

This is because of the current takeover situation. Sir Jim Ratcliffe is set to acquire a 25 per cent stake at Old Trafford after beating Qatari billionaire Sheikh Jassim in the race.

Ratcliffe wants to take control of everything football-related at the club and is prepared for a big January.

But his minority takeover is yet to be completed, so until that is the case, it would be fair to take the majority of January transfer rumours with a pinch of salt.

READ MORE: Ten Hag sack set as Manchester United consider ‘Jose Mourinho move’ after one win in 12 games