Manchester United transfer round-up: James' verbal agreement, Mourinho's Premier League raid and more
James house hunting in Manchester?
James Rodriguez has reached a verbal agreement to sign for Manchester United later this summer, reports Spanish journal Don Balon. Jose Mourinho is keen to add to his attacking options after a dull 0-0 draw against Manchester City last night.
According to Don Balon, James has accepted he does not have any future at Real Madrid and sees Manchester United as the better option than the Chinese Super League.
The Sun have further continued the story and claim James’ wife Daniela Ospina has already started to look for a house in Manchester or London ahead of the much-anticipated transfer to the Premier League.
Mourinho to go after Tottenham Hotspur duo?
Jose Mourinho has given the green light for Manchester United’s push to sign Tottenham’s Eric Dier this summer, according to reports from Daily Star. Dier has struggled to break into Tottenham’s midfield and has seen game time in central defence, where he is not very comfortable at.
Mourinho is still trying to find the best replacement for Michael Carrick, who can no longer play week in, week out. Experts have called out Mourinho to sign a more combative and ball-playing midfielder to bring out the best from Paul Pogba and Mourinho thinks Dier is the ideal candidate.
Despite signing a new five-year contract in 2016, United feel Dier can be pursued with a bid in excess of £40m. The Red Devils have also followed Dier’s teammate Harry Kane as a potential summer signing, but have been met with fierce rejection from the North London side.
Monaco ready to sell Bakayoko
AS Monaco are reportedly prepared to sell their midfield star Tiemoue Bakayoko this summer, with Chelsea and Manchester United favourites to sign the 22-year-old star, according to Le 10 Sport.
The report claims that Monaco have given up agreeing on a new deal with Bakayoko who has refused to sign the new contract offered several times this season. As per Le 10 Sport, United have already tabled a €48m offer for the Frenchman and if Chelsea do not better that offer, United will win the race to sign the much-coveted midfield ace.
Manchester United are also in talks to sign Bakayoko's clubmate Bernardo Silva and according to AS, Portuguese international Silva has already held advanced talks to join hands with Jose Mourinho at Old Trafford next season.
Morata a surprise target for Manchester United
Jose Mourinho has been impressed with Alvaro Morata’s goal-scoring exploits this season and has added him to his summer transfer wishlist, according to exclusive reports from Sportskeeda. The 24-year-old was developed in the youth ranks of Real Madrid before then manager Jose Mourinho handed him his first-team debut at the age of 18.
Despite playing very little this season, Morata’s impact can be seen from the fact that he has scored 18 goals in 1,683 minutes for Los Blancos this term, including 13 in La Liga – despite only starting 12 games. Morata is Real Madrid’s second highest goal scorer this season, only behind Cristiano Ronaldo (31).
Mourinho is hopeful of Morata to continue his goal-scoring run at Manchester United and is prepared to meet Real Madrid’s asking price of €40m. Chelsea were considered the favourites to sign the Spaniard this summer, however, with Mourinho interested, we can expect an intriguing transfer battle this summer.