Manchester United are interested in signing former Fulham midfielder Joao Palhinha from Bayern Munich, according to reports.
The Red Devils are expected to sign a centre-forward and a winger after confirming the addition of Wolves forward Matheus Cunha.
Improving the attack was Ruben Amorim’s top priority this summer, and the 40-year-old reportedly wants to reunite with Sporting CP goal machine Viktor Gyokeres.
However, the Swedish international’s preference is to join Arsenal, who are weighing up a move for him or RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko.
As for a new winger, United‘s top target is believed to be Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo, who scored 20 Premier League goals last season.
Once United have signed a striker and a wide forward, they will turn their full attention to selling players to raise funds for further signings.
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They are, of course, already working on shifting several players, with Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Alejandro Garnacho all reportedly surplus to requirements.
Offloading Rashford and Sancho is proving tricky due to their extortionate wages, while Garnacho is attracting interest from Chelsea and Napoli.
Having signed wing-back Patrick Dorgu in January, Amorim is also expected to bring in a new central midfielder later this summer.
While funds aren’t currently available for a midfield signing, United are still drawing up shortlists and tracking potential targets.
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According to a report from CaughtOffside, one of the players United are keen on is Bayern and Portugal midfielder Palhinha.
The Portuguese international joined Bayern from Fulham last summer but failed to nail down a starting place under Vincent Kompany.
That has opened the door for a potential exit, with the Bundesliga champions said to be ‘open to selling’ Palhinha in this transfer window.
There are two key reasons behind United’s interest: his physicality and experience — exactly what Amorim is said to be looking for in a new midfielder.
As expected, Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s transfer team will ‘continue talks with their primary targets’ before making a move for the 29-year-old, who is valued at €30million (£25.7m), according to Transfermarkt.
Regardless, Amorim is ‘keen to include Palhinha in his wider transfer plans’, and despite costing Bayern around €50m just last July, they could sell for €30–35m this summer.
United are not alone in the race, with former club Fulham, as well as Benfica, West Ham and Nottingham Forest all ‘closely monitoring the midfielder’s situation’.
Bayern will not sanction a loan exit for Palhinha, even if that would be ‘favourable’ for United, the report adds.
Meanwhile, the German giants are in the market for a left-winger and have been linked with Arsenal and Chelsea target Rafael Leao of AC Milan.
Leao recently helped Portugal win the UEFA Nations League — Cristiano Ronaldo’s third international trophy with his country.
Palhinha was an unused substitute in the final against Spain on June 8 but has earned 34 caps for Portugal.
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