Man Utd have made an offer for Barcelona defender Andreas Christensen as they look to give Ruben Amorim his first signing, according to reports.
The Red Devils have turned to the Sporting Lisbon boss as they attempt to turn a corner under Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS’ guidance.
INEOS decided to stick with Erik en Hag over the summer but recent results and performances saw them sack the Dutchman last Monday.
Man Utd have struggled to find a manager since Sir Alex Ferguson who can get them challenging for the Premier League title with Jose Mourinho guiding them to second place in 2018 – but they were still 19 points behind champions Man City.
And Man Utd supporters will be hoping they can gradually start to put in performances that make them look capable of challenging for the Premier League title again in the near future.
The Red Devils, who drew 1-1 with Chelsea on Sunday, intend to give Amorim the tools to be successful with reports in Spain claiming that the new Man Utd boss is ‘determined to strengthen his defence in the next winter transfer window’.
His ‘first target’ is going to be Barcelona defender Christensen with Man Utd now making a €15m (£12.6m) ‘offer’ for the Denmark international.
It is a sum of money that Barca sporting director Deco ‘would be willing to consider’ in January with an injury leaving out of Hansi Flick’s plans at the Camp Nou.
And Christensen’s future at Barcelona ‘is in doubt’ with just one substitute appearance all season for the experienced 28-year-old.
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The imminent returns of Ronald Araujo and Eric Garcia could also push the former Chelsea centre-back down the pecking order and the €15m offer from Man Utd ‘not only represents a good opportunity for Barcelona in economic terms, but would also give them the flexibility to make some reinforcements in other positions if they consider it necessary’.
Viktor Gyokeres and other Sporting Lisbon players have been linked to following Amorim to Old Trafford but a report in Portugal on Sunday insisted that the Sweden international does not want to join his current manager to Old Trafford.
Portuguese newspaper Record claim that Gyokeres doesn’t want to join Man Utd because they are ‘disorganised, unstable and permanently on fire’.
Despite that the publication reckons it is ‘practically guaranteed’ that the Red Devils will still make an approach for the Sporting striker as they look to improve their goal output.
The report adds:
‘It is true that the Red Devils have been out of the race, but with the arrival of Amorim, a great admirer of the number 9, it is likely that they will position themselves for an attack, not in January, as Rúben himself anticipated (even given the cost of the operation), but thinking about the end of the season.
‘Therefore, it is practically guaranteed that there will be an approach, Record knows that Gyökeres has other preferences for pursuing his career, as the United project is viewed with… suspicion..’
