Man Utd set to sign midfielder in £9m deal after seeing off late bid from Arsenal

We’re now at the business end of the summer transfer window and managers are working hard trying to strengthen their squads so we’ll bring you all the latest news and gossip from around the world. Here, Man Utd are set to sign Hannibal Mejbri…

Manchester United are set to sign highly-rated midfielder Hannibal Mejbri in a £9.1m deal from Monaco after seeing-off a late bid from Arsenal, according to reports.

Mejbri joined Monaco in a £1m deal when he was just 14 and he’s earned a reputation as one of the hottest young talents in French football having played a starring role for his country at various youth levels – most recently the U16s.

The 16-year-old is yet to make his full senior debut for Monaco but he’s expected to have a huge future in the game and his potential has attracted interest from a number of top clubs throughout Europe.

Mejbri’s future at Monaco has been in doubt this year as he’s been frozen out of their youth games because his family are locked in a dispute with the club over his contract and it seems the youngster is now eyeing a move away from the principality.

Manchester United have emerged as the front-runners for his signature and Sky Sports News claim the Red Devils are confident of wrapping up a deal to sign Mejbri this summer.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been revamping his squad over the past few weeks and he’s placed an emphasis on signing talented youngsters with Daniel James and Aaron Wan-Bissaka both moving to Old Trafford.

It looks like Mejbri could be the next starlet to make his way to Manchester as the Metro are citing L’Equipe as saying United have agreed a deal with Monaco worth £9.1m [€10m] to sign the teenager.

The French publication says Arsenal made a late bid to try and hijack the move after indicating they were prepared to match United’s offer but the proposed deal was too far down the line and Mejbri has made up his mind to move to Old Trafford.

The report says the player’s representatives are expected in Manchester to finalise the move and Mejbri is due to play for United’s U18s this season before signing a professional contract when he turns 17.

Read –> Arsenal transfer news | Man Utd transfer news

The deal will be seen as something of a coup for Man Utd as Mejbri is one of the most sought-after young talents in Europe so it will be interesting to see how he develops over the coming years.