Arsenal have cleared the path for Manchester United to sign a new striker after the Red Devils’ ‘positive and instructive’ talks with the £67m man amid Gunners ‘concerns’ over his injury record.
United have already landed Matheus Cunha from Wolves after triggering his £62.5m release clause and are thought to be preparing a second bid for Bryan Mbeumo after their opening offer of £45m plus £10m in add-ons was rejected by Brentford amid interest from Thomas Frank’s Tottenham.
But a new No.9 is thought to be a priority amid doubts over the future of Rasmus Hojlund, and while they have been heavily linked with both Sporting’s Victor Gyokeres and Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike, the former only has eyes for Arsenal while the latter’s £85m asking price may well be beyond their reach.
But a report on Wednesday claimed the camp of Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic – who has scored 56 goals in 142 games for the Serie A giants – have ‘approached’ United directly to see if they’re interested in signing him this summer.
It’s said he is ‘increasingly pushing’ for a move to the club, with Old Trafford his ‘dream destination’, with Vlahovic is motivated by the idea of working under Ruben Amorim and playing in a more ‘open, physically demanding league’.
United have held direct talks with the Serbian striker after the approach from his agent, as they ‘intensify efforts’ to land a ‘reliable’ No.9.
The talks have been described as ‘positive and instructive’ and Vlahovic could represent decent value for money with Juventes reportedly wanting around €45m [£38.5m] for the 25-year-old.
The Old Lady beat Arsenal to his £67m signing from Fiorentina in January 2022, and while the Gunners have continued to keep tabs on his situation, seeing him as a cheap alternative to Gyokeres and RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko, the Gunners have ‘concerns’ as to ‘whether he is going to be able to stay fit’ after his 11 separate, albeit minor, injury layoffs in his time at Juventus.
Transfer expert Ben Jacobs told talkSPORT: “There’s been concerns from a number of Premier Leagueclubs about Vlahovic – Arsenal, in particular, and Chelsea as well, who never advanced anything about Vlahovic specifically because of a chronic groin injury.
“Clubs want to be aware of whether or not they feel, should he come to the Premier League and its pace and physicality, whether he is going to be able to stay fit.”