Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is zeroing in on at least five new signings possibly during the January and July transfer windows next year to build up the Red Devils roster further. While the four other would-be recruits remain unconfirmed, reports said Leicester star James Maddison is nearly on the pocket.
In fact, United is said to be ramping up on efforts to bring in Maddison, who Solskjaer has reportedly tagged as just the creative midfielder that the club badly needs. The Sun said the English center-back is all but confirmed to agree on a deal with the Reds.
For the transfer to move ahead, the Maddison asking price is no less than £85 million, and there seems to be no reason for United to oblige given the interest displayed by the United boss.
It appeared too that confidence is high on the side of United that Maddison will want a transfer that will bring him to Old Trafford. That's because the Reds are banking on Maddison's close ties with Harry Maguire, and they believe the former can be persuaded to play alongside his pal, Metro said in a related report.
"Old Trafford chiefs believe the fact that Maddison is a boyhood United fan and close friends with Maguire will prove pivotal in the pursuit," the report stated.
In addition, United sees the Leicester midfielder as the perfect recruit for the club since he will be turning 23 soon, and the age level is regarded by the team as the optimal point for new hires.
As for the planned signings in the upcoming winter and summer transfer windows, it looked like Mario Mandzukic has emerged as the only confirmed target following reports that talks are now underway and that the Croatian has relented on reducing his asking price.
The Express said Solskjaer could be considering a move on Paulo Dybala, but there were indications the latter would not be moving out of Juventus anytime soon. It seemed Dybala's hopes of a brighter future in Italy were boosted by the change of leadership in the Old Lady dugout.
In other words, it would be hard to convince Dybala to try out the Premier League now.
There were reports too that United is eyeing to attract Christian Eriksen out of Tottenham, but the midfielder from Denmark is unlikely to express interest for now. Eriksen has recently made clear that in moving out of the Spurs, his preferred destination would be Real Madrid.
Apart from the three mentioned candidates, Solskjaer is thought to be exploring the possibility of signing up attackers, and on top of his shortlist are Moussa Dembele, Jadon Sancho, and Timo Werner.
