Chelsea
Agent Of £36m Star Flies-Out To Secure Man Utd Move Despite Late Chelsea Interest
The agent of Nicolas Otamendi has flown-out to put the finishing touches on a move to Manchester United despite late interest coming from Chelsea.
With the summer transfer window finally open for business, managers are working hard trying to strengthen their squads ahead of next season so we’ll bring you all the news and gossip. Today, Nicolas Otamendi closes in on a move to Man Utd….
The agent of Nicolas Otamendi has flown-out to put the finishing touches on a move to Manchester United as Louis van Gaal closes in on the £36m-rated centre-back, according to the Metro.
Otamendi has established himself as one of the best defenders in La Liga following his move to Valencia from Porto in February 2014 with his excellent displays helping Nuno Espirito Santo’s side secure a top four finish last season.
The 26-year-old’s impressive form has seen him strongly linked with a move to the Premier League this season with the Daily Star reporting last month that Manchester United had agreed personal terms with the player ahead of a potential move.
It looked like the Red Devils were going to face some stiff competition for Otamendi’s signature as the Express claimed just last week that Chelsea had made a late move to try and derail United’s proposed deal with Jose Mourinho supposedly making contact with the defender’s agent to discuss a switch to West London.
However, it appears United have managed to fend off the Blues interest as the Metro are citing reports coming from Spanish outlet AS who claim that Otamendi’s agent has now flown-out to finalise a transfer to Old Trafford.
The newspaper suggests that the Argentinean international has gone on strike to try and force the move and is hoping he won’t have to return to Valencia for pre-season as meetings between the clubs are due to take place over the coming days.
A fee with Valencia has always been the major sticking point as the Metro point out that while United hope to get him cheaper, Otamendi’s buy-out clause is set at close to £36m and the Spanish outfit aren’t in a position where they have to cash-in.
It’s going to be interesting to see how negotiations between the clubs progress over the coming days but it does appear like it’s only a matter of time until Otamendi becomes United’s latest big-money signing.
Louis van Gaal has already been extremely busy in the transfer market and wrapped up his second, third and fourth signings of the summer over the weekend following the arrivals of Matteo Darmian, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Morgan Schneiderlin.
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With the trio joining Memphis Depay in moving to Old Trafford this summer, United’s squad is looking extremely strong and if they could add Otamendi as well as a striker to replace Robin van Persie then I think they’ll be serious contenders for the title.
However, there’s still a long way to go before the Argentinean defender is a United player and there is still time for Chelsea to try and hijack the proposed move, so we’ll have to wait and see how things develop over the coming days.
