Talent-chasing Manchester United is reportedly scouting a midfielder recruit in Spain to be part of the Red Devils roster starting in January. The English club is said to be courting Barcelona for the right to move Ivan Rakitic to the Premier League. The two teams are now negotiating.
United has already made inquiries on the Croatian midfielder, who lately has been sparingly used in Barcelona matches. The Mirror reported that in the current season so far, Rakitic saw action for only a total of 186 minutes and appeared in just a single start.
With his dwindling time, Rakitic is seemed to be on his way out, and Barca has indicated a willingness to selling him to interested clubs. It so happened that in the last transfer window, there were rumors that Rakitic will transfer to the Old Trafford, but nothing came through on the talks.
There is another chance in the coming winter for the midfielder to join the Red Devils, and the club has indicated it is willing to receive the Croatian by agreeing on opening talks with Barcelona, the same report from The Mirror said.
However, United will need to outbid other teams in order to convince Barcelona to let go of Rakitic. In a report, Manchester Evening News said that other Italian clubs are also competing to win the rights on the midfielder, namely Juventus and Inter Milan.
If true, United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has to come up with a great plan to meet the asking price for Rakitic that reportedly is not lower than £34 million.
The Croatian has confirmed in recent reports that he is entertaining a continuation of his career outside of the La Liga circuit though he has maintained Barcelona will always be his preferred club.
"I have two years left on my deal, and there's no better place to play than Barcelona, the best club in the world, but I need to play," Metro quoted Rakitic as saying.
Rakitic revealed he has already made known his sentiments and had spoken with Barca official. It was clear to him that the club is aware that he will exercise his options if the current situation of too little time on the pitch for him will continue.
"It's tough because I want to play and not just be part of the team. I will do everything possible to change my situation," Rakitic said.
There is no word, however, where exactly the Croatian will want to relocate. As mentioned, he can soon wear the Red Devils uniform or opt for Italy to pick between two interesting clubs.
