Man Utd To Table Formal Bid For £35m-Rated Chelsea Target After Talks With Agent

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, more on Man Utd’s pursuit of Nicolas Otamendi….

Manchester United will table a formal bid for Nicolas Otamendi after holding talks with his agent but the Red Devils will face competition for his signature from rivals Chelsea and Manchester City, according go the Express.

Otamendi has been strongly linked with a move to Old Trafford this summer and the Metro reported last week that the defender’s agent Jorge Mendes was preparing to meet with United to discuss a potential deal.

It appears that meeting has now taken place as the Express are citing reports coming out of Spain which claim that United are set to table a formal bid by the end of the week after officials met with Mendes in Porto on Saturday.

The 27-year-old is due to return to pre-season training on Sunday 26th after his extended break but the newspaper suggests that United will submit their offer before that point and Mendes has supposedly told the centre-back that a transfer will be agreed sooner rather than later.

However, United aren’t the only club in the running as the Express claim that Manchester City are also lining-up a bid of their own while Chelsea are believed to be willing to match the £50,000-a-week wages that the Red Devils have offered Otamendi.

It’s gearing up to be a mammoth battle between the three Premier League heavy-weights, and that doesn’t even take into consideration any further competition from foreign clubs, so Otamendi is certainly one of the most sought after players on the market right now.

Along with a striker, I expect United to sign a new centre-back over the coming weeks and it appears the Argentine is now a prime target but Chelsea and City could also do with more options at the back, so it’s going to be fascinating to see where Otamendi ends up.

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He’s developed into one of the best central defender’s in Spain following his move to Valencia from Porto in February 2014 and I think he’d be an excellent signing for any of the English clubs supposedly in the race for his signature.

However, they’re going to have to be prepared to dig deep as the Express claim that Valencia are demanding the full value of his £35m buy-out clause so the Spaniard’s aren’t ready to let the defender go without a fight.