Manchester United are reportedly battling with Chelsea and Liverpool over a deal to sign LOSC Lille youngster Ayyoub Bouaddi, as per Caught Offside.
The Red Devils have continued to display inconsistent performances under Ruben Amorim this season, languishing seventh in the Premier League table with 26 points from 17 matches.
Following a poor start, United showed signs of improvement in October by winning three consecutive games. However, they then suffered a slight dip in form before once again showing improvement over their last three matches.
Still, after drawing 4-4 against AFC Bournemouth, Ruben Amorim’s side lost to in-form Aston Villa on Sunday. As a result, they have won only twice out of the last eight league matches.
Meanwhile, Caught Offside claim that United are looking to replace Casemiro, whose existing deal is set to expire at the end of this season, and believe Bouaddi would be a ‘perfect fit’ for Amorim’s system.
They have been monitoring his development closely before making a potential swoop next year. However, purchasing the teenager won’t be straightforward, as he has been attracting a lot of attention, having displayed impressive performances in Ligue 1 in recent times.
Chelsea are keen on him and are planning to launch a formal £43m bid to seal the deal. Moreover, Arsenal are in this race and have already held talks with the player’s representatives to persuade him to join. Liverpool are also interested in him and could make a concrete approach.
Battle
The report mention that the Premier League giants aren’t the only clubs in this race as Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid have also expressed their interest in him.
Lille recently tied him to a fresh term until 2029 and have no intention of letting him leave for anything less than £52m.
The 18-year-old is a defensive midfielder by trait but is also comfortable in the box-to-box role. He is a highly talented player and could become world-class in the future. However, he isn’t a finished article yet and still needs time to develop.
It is going to be interesting to see whether the Old Trafford club, the Blues, or the Reds eventually make a concrete approach to secure his service in January or next summer.
