According to Italian outlet Calciomercato.it, Manchester United are one of the clubs interested in signing Santos striker Marcos Leonardo.
The Red Devils recently secured a transfer agreement with Atalanta to sign Rasmus Hojlund, and the Dane is expected to become an automatic starter in the number 9 role. Man United also have Anthony Martial in the squad for the position, but Calciomercato claim that they are in the mix for Leonardo.
The source mention that the League Cup champions are in a three-way race with Newcastle United and Roma for the young striker, who is valued at £13 million by Santos. Roma have already engaged in discussions with the Brazilian club for Leonardo, and he apparently favours to join them this summer.
Young talent
Leonardo made his debut for Santos as a 17-year-old in 2020 after graduating through their academy. Over the last 3 years, he has accumulated 47 goals and 11 assists for the Brazil heavyweights. Out of those, 14 goals and 4 assists have come this season.
The Brazilian has not been a prolific striker in his young career, but he could improve with age and experience. United recently pursued Hojlund for a big fee from Atalanta, and they could consider Leonardo as a potential deputy for the Dane.
However, a deal could be difficult to pull off at the moment with Roma leading the hunt. The Serie A giants are without Tammy Abraham for the remainder of the calendar year following his horrific knee injury in the final game of last season.
The Rome-based outfit could be prepared to guarantee Leonardo with regular minutes in the centre-forward role which may not be the case at United. Hojlund is expected to lead the line regularly after his big-money move from Bergamo.
United can’t be completely ruled out of the race for Leonardo just yet, but Jose Mourinho’s side seem to have the upper hand with the assurance of regular first-team football for Leonardo in the forthcoming league campaign.
