Manchester United could sign Bayern Munich defender Benjamin Pavard for just £26.8m this summer, according to reports via the Sun.
Pavard’s current contract with the Bundesliga giants will expire in 2024 and he is reportedly keen on leaving the club at end of the season following the arrival of Manchester City full-back Joao Cancelo.
The 26-year-old has regularly been linked with a move away from the Allianz Arena and the report says Bayern were open to selling in January but a proposed move to Inter Milan fell through.
The German champions are now ready to cash-in this summer and Sport 1 claims they’ll do business if £26.8m is put on the table – which is a very reasonable fee for a player of Pavard’s quality.
The situation has alerted clubs here in the Premier League as The Sun says Manchester United could step-up their long-running interest in Pavard over the coming months.
However, United will face fierce competition from several clubs for Pavard’s signature with the newspaper claiming that Chelsea, Barcelona and Inter Milan also interested in signing the full-back.
According to Sport 1, the France international’s preferred choice is Barcelona, however, a tempting offer from Man Utd could lure Bayern into selling him to the Premier League side.
New right-back
Erik ten Hag wants to bolster his right-back position to provide competition to Diogo Dalot. Aaron Wan-Bissaka was frozen out of the first-team at the start of the season but an injury to Dalot saw him recalled and he’s featured in 12 games so far.
However, United are still expected to buy a new right-back in the summer and they were linked with Inter Milan right-back Denzel Dumfries in the winter transfer window.
It remains to be seen whether they formalise their interest in the Dutchman but it appears Pavard is also on their radar and he’d be an excellent addition to ten Hag’s squad.
The Frenchman is one of the highly-rated full-backs in the world following his inspired performances for club and country. He played a key role in helping France win the 2018 World Cup by beating Croatia in the final.
However, Les Bleus could not defend the title following a 4-2 penalty shootout defeat to Argentina at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar following a thrilling 3-3 draw.
Since joining Bayern from Stuttgart in 2019, he has gone on to clinch several trophies including the Bundesliga, UEFA Champions League, Club World Cup and many domestic cups as well.
He has racked up 143 appearances for Bayern Munich and made 20 goal contributions in the process. Despite falling out with manager Julian Nagelsmann for game time, he has made 24 appearances and provided four assists as they lie top of the league table.
Read more: Journalist: Chelsea & Man Utd not afraid to pay £107m to sign 15-goal star
