Fabrizio Romano has reported that Manchester United are yet to reach an agreement with Adrien Rabiot on personal terms as they battle to keep the proposed deal alive.
Romano has revealed that the move is stalling as the player’s salary request has been considered too high by United. A fee in the range of £14.3 million has already been agreed with Juventus for the 27-year-old, who is now in the final year of his contract in Turin, but Man Utd are refusing to meet his wage demands.
The Athletic reported last week that Rabiot was being eyed by Manchester United and that they would go through with his signing irrespective of the outcome of the Frenkie de Jong saga. Since then, talks with Juve have been progressing and it was always down to agreeing on personal terms with the player, who’s agent is considered to be a stumbling block in the deal.
Manchester United have struggled to make in-roads in the market this summer. Frenkie de Jong has been the number one target for Erik ten Hag but United have not been able to convince the player to join them. Anthony also emerged as a key target for the former Ajax boss, who is also looking to strengthen his frontline. Ajax, however, are playing hardball in the negotiations and an agreement between the two clubs is still far.
So far, Tyrell Malacia, Lisandro Martinez, and Christian Eriksen are the only new faces at Old Trafford and United only have until September 1st to add more names to their ranks.
Our View
Manchester United chasing Rabiot does not make sense. The Frenchman is an average passer of the ball and is at par with Scott McTominay or Fred on the basis of that metric. On the offence he lacks the final touch and the ability to whip those crosses into the box.
Then, what exactly are United chasing when it comes to Rabiot?
Yes, one thing is certain he could provide depth in their midfield and could even compete for places but to expect him to solve United’s midfield issues would be too great an ask. The reason why Erik ten Hag wanted Frenkie de Jong is because of his ability to keep the ball and also the fact that he is one of the top passers in Europe.
Rabiot’s signing for United will either be a hit or a miss but only time will tell which way the pendulum sways for the 2018 World Cup winner, should he eventually complete a move to Old Trafford.
