Manchester United and Sporting CP seem to have had quite a few intertwined lines in the past few seasons. However, it doesn’t seem like the two clubs necessarily share a good relationship, considering the way the Red Devils poached Ruben Amorim.
Even the club captain, Bruno Fernandes, came to Old Trafford from Portugal. There are a number of Sporting players who are constantly linked with a move to Man Utd, especially due to the obvious Amorim connection.
Now, as per Caught Offside, Manchester United are plotting a move to sign talented Sporting CP centre-back Zeno Debast. The Belgian defender has done very well for the Portuguese club in recent times and might not be far away from a big move.
Debast is tied down to a long-term contract until 2029 at Sporting CP. However, with interest from clubs like Arsenal, Man Utd, and Aston Villa, it feels like it won’t be long before the 21-year-old leaves his current club for a new avenue.
Man Utd are said to be willing to offer around €40m to sign the player but the player has a release clause that is effectively double of that valuation – £69.4m. Sporting CP have never been a club who have made compromises during negotiations.
It is worth noting that Sporting owes the player’s former club Anderlecht 15% of his next transfer and this complicates things for Manchester United even more. Thus, they need to step up their game and make a more significant bid, should they be serious on signing Zeno Debast.
Manchester United have a number of talented centre-backs in the squad. The likes of Matthijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro, Lisandro Martinez and Luke Shaw seem to be playing at a very high level and even Harry Maguire and Ayden Heaven have an important part to play.
Regardless, signing Debast would be an excellent addition to the squad. It could all come down to the price tag of the player and let’s wait and see how the negotiations play out.
