Manchester United readying £42 million offer for Premier League midfielder - Reports
Manchester United are reportedly preparing an offer worth £42 million for Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Ruben Neves.
According to "The Transfer Exchange Show" (via CaughtOffside), the Red Devils bid £35 million for Neves in January this year. However, Wolves rejected the offer.
United have now raised their offer in their bid to bring the Portuguese international to Old Trafford. CaughtOffside's report added that Wolves want £50 million for Neves, whose current deal with the Premier League outfit runs until 2024.
Manchester United are preparing a second bid for Ruben Neves after having a £35m bid rejected in January.
Now they're set to go back in with a bid of around £42m, however Wolves want £50m.
Neves has told his agent, he'd rather stay in England for family reasons. #MUFC 🔴⚫⚪ https://t.co/kAwRGsr0pU
Manchester United are notably not alone in the race for his signature. ESPN reported last month that La Liga giants Barcelona were interested in signing Neves as well. As per the publication, the Portuguese international was the most "likely" of the club's three midfield targets to make the move to the Camp Nou.
It is worth noting that United are also reportedly keen to bring in Blaugrana midfielder Frenkie de Jong. Italian transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, in his column for CaughtOffside, stated that the Red Devils were in direct negotiations with Barcelona to sign the Dutchman. However, de Jong is yet to give the green light for the move to go through.
Manchester United desperately need to reinforce their midfield, which has been a weak link in recent years. The departures of Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard and Nemanja Matic this summer mean the club need to make some quality additions to their squad.
Manchester United target Ruben Neves has impressed for Wolverhampton Wanderers
Neves joined Wolves from Primeira Liga giants Porto back in the summer of 2017 when the English side were still in the EFL Championship. He played 42 times in the English second-tier in his debut season at the Molineux as his side secured promotion into the top-flight.
The 25-year-old netted four goals and recorded three assists in the following Premier League campaign to help Wolves secure a seventh-place finish. Neves then played a key role in guiding the side to the quarterfinals of the UEFA Europa League in the 2019-20 season, where they fell to Sevilla.
Overall, he has played 212 times for Wolves across competitions, scoring 24 goals and laying out 12 assists while picking up the Championship title. Neves has also made 28 appearances for Portugal and was part of the squad that won the 2018-19 UEFA Nations League title.
Wolves technical director Scott Sellars to club media on Ruben Neves: "A top player. Been fantastic this season + showed again his quality. We want him to stay. But am also realistic. When you’ve got outstanding player top clubs are going to come + try to see what situation is"