Fabrizio Romano has provided an update on Kobbie Mainoo to Chelsea while the key to Manchester United signing his potential replacement from Serie A has been revealed.

Mainoo was previously heralded as one of United’s ‘untouchable’ stars along with Alejandro Garnacho, but the club’s dire finances now mean every player has a price.

Chelsea have leapt to the front of the queue to sign Mainoo, who is said to be ‘unhappy’ with the initial terms offered by INEOS in negotiations over a new contract.

Mainoo currently earns just £20,000 per week, a drop in the ocean compared to Casemiro’s £350,000 per week wedge, and wants a salary that reflects his importance to the team.

United are keen to keep their academy graduate but are also open to offers – from Chelsea or other suitors – as his pure profit sale would be a huge help as they look to stay within the bounds of PSR guidelines.

Should Mainoo leave the club, United will need to source a replacement, and even if he doesn’t Amorim would welcome new midfield recruits with both Casemiro and Christian Eriksen on their last legs.

Reports claim they’ve been offered the chance to sign Douglas Luiz, who joined Juventus for £42.4m in the summer but has started just two games under Thiago Motta this season, with Manuel Locatelli, Khephren Thuram and Teun Koopmeiners preferred in midfield.

The Brazil international is keen on a return to the Premier League and Italian journalist Ciro Venerato has revealed that United are one of the clubs keen to sign him this winter.

It’s claimed Juventus want to recoup most of what they spent on Luiz in the summer but would consider a loan with an obligation to buy, though the Serie A giants are also interested in Joshua Zirkzee and would be open to some sort of swap deal.

Kia Joorabchan, who represents both Luiz and Zirkzee, is understandably thought to be key to the transfer.

Chelsea would likely be eager to see that deal go through in the hope that it will ease their path to Mainoo, and his potential move to Stamford Bridge has been given the seal of approval by England international teammate Cole Palmer.

Instagram user @TheSecretScout1 asked their followers if Mainoo joining Chelsea would be a good move and Palmer gave the post a thumbs up.

MORE MANCHESTER UNITED COVERAGE ON F365
👉 Kobbie Mainoo leads the Premier League’s underpaid army
👉 Kobbie Mainoo to Chelsea? Man Utd fans would rather take PSR hit
👉 Manchester United flop among five summer transfers clubs are already desperate to sell

Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that while Chelsea hold an interest in Mainoo, it’s far from a “desperate situation for Manchester United”.

“What I can tell you, many of your messages are about this Chelsea story, I think it’s absolutely normal for all top clubs in the world – Chelsea for sure – but also many others to appreciate a player like Kobbie Mainoo,” he said on his YouTube channel.

“How can you not love a talent like Kobbie Mainoo? A guy who was in the academy one year ago, then a fantastic rise with Man United, Euros – don’t forget what this boy did for the English national team as a kid. So, it’s absolutely normal to fall in love with Kobbie Mainoo, especially if you’re an English club.

“But, that’s it at the moment. My headline is not ‘Chelsea like Kobbie Mainoo’ because that’s absolutely obvious and normal.

“But, the point here for Manchester United is that there are no negotiations with any other club, no bid on the table, the situation is completely quiet. The player is under contract till 2027 plus an option until 2028. So it’s not a desperate situation for Manchester United.”

Now we know the notion of any Premier League player being ‘underpaid’ is ludicrous, but it’s all about context and there is always context – like Casemiro being paid almost 20 times more than Kobbie Mainoo.

We have chosen one per Premier League club based on the figures from Capology, who have ‘verified’ many of these wages…

ARSENAL: Gabriel (£100,000 a week)
He’s an Arsenal defensive stalwart but he still earns less than Kieran Tierney, significantly less than Oleksandr Zinchenko and not much more than a third of the £280,000 handed to Kai Havertz every week to be significantly worse than Alexander Isak.

ASTON VILLA: Morgan Rogers (£75,000 a week)
The daft sod only signed a new deal in November but has found himself still earning considerably less than Leon Bailey (£150,000). Rogers has six Premier League goals this season to the Jamaican’s one.

BOURNEMOUTH: Milos Kerkez (£30,000 a week)
The world and his wife are hawking ‘Kerkez to Liverpool’ rumours but the Hungarian actually earns about half as much as Tyler Adams at the Cherries.

BRENTFORD: Kevin Schade (£10,000 a week)
Now he’s a) in the team and b) scoring goals, he might want to ask why he earns a seventh of the sum reportedly handed to Aaron Hickey every week.

BRIGHTON: Yasin Ayari (£8,000 a week)
He’s only 21 so that is still a fair whack of money, but the Swede has started 11 Premier League games this season while Ferdi Kadioglu has started five for his reported £87,500 a week. Lesson: Buying from Fenerbahce is expensive.

CHELSEA: Malo Gusto and Romeo Lavia (£45,000 a week)
One downside of signing a 17-year contract might be that your wages over a five-year deal are simply spread over however many years it takes you to lose the will to live. Particularly galling when Ben Chilwell is earning £200,000 a week to do the square root of f*** all.

CRYSTAL PALACE: Adam Wharton (£35,000 a week)
That probably seemed like a lot until he heard that Eddie Nketiah earns £90,000 a week.

EVERTON: Dwight McNeil (£25,000 a week)
Clearly, if you sign players from East Lancashire clubs, they are just grateful to escape. It’s obviously a whole heap of money, but Abdoulaye Doucoure somehow earns more than five times his wages. He’s good but…

FULHAM: Antonee Robinson (£50,000 a week)
Not one of the lowest earners at Fulham but in the middle ranks along with Harrison Reed and Kenny Tete when really, he should be in the £100,000-a-week bracket with Raul Jimenez and Bernd Leno.

IPSWICH TOWN: Omari Hutchinson (£6,000 a week)
We really hope he is on some sort of survival bonus because he is doing as much as anybody to try and keep the Tractor Boys in the Premier League. We really, really hope Ipswich are paying only a fraction of the £150,000 a week being paid to Kalvin Phillips…

LEICESTER CITY: Mads Hermansen (£10,000 a week)
After single-handedly (we spot a problem) trying to keep the Foxes in the Premier League in the first stretch of the season, he is now injured. And still earning so, so much less than loanee Odsonne Edouard (£90,000 a week).

LIVERPOOL: Curtis Jones (£15,000 a week)
While Trent Alexander-Arnold seeks a hike on his £180,000-a-week wages, he should perhaps spare a thought for his fellow England international on about 8% of his salary.

MANCHESTER CITY: Rico Lewis (£25,000 a week)
It’s always the homegrown players who are scrapping around on a mere £1.3m a year, while Matheus Nunes swans about on £6.76m, or about £130,000 a week. It’s not Kevin de Bruyne money, but he’s not got Kevin de Bruyne skills.

MANCHESTER UNITED: Kobbie Mainoo (£20,000 a week)
He is said to be unhappy with Man Utd’s initial offer of new terms, which will take him nowhere close to the £350,000 a week being trousered by Casemiro.

NEWCASTLE UNITED: Lewis Hall (£7,000 a week)
We are taking this with a massive pinch of salt as this would put him below John Ruddy. If you want big wages, you really need to join on a free transfer like Lloyd Kelly and his reported £150,000 a week.

NOTTINGHAM FOREST: Anthony Elanga (£25,000 a week)
At least he can thumb his nose at Mainoo, still earning less at Manchester United than Elanga at Forest. Meanwhile, are Forest paying all of James Ward-Prowse’s £115,000-a-week wages for his five Premier League starts?

SOUTHAMPTON: Tyler Dibling (£5,000 a week)
It’s hardly apprentice wages but it’s sod all in football terms for one of the Saints’ few bright sparks in a ridiculously bad season. Especially when Aaron Ramsdale is on a reported £120,000 a week for a fool’s errand.

TOTTENHAM: Micky van de Ven (£50,000 a week)
Sizeable wages compared to some on this list, but when compared to the £165,000 a week reportedly paid to Timo Werner, it’s a relative pittance for Spurs’ best defender.

WEST HAM: N/A
None of these f***ers are underpaid.

WOLVES: Rayan Ait-Nouri (£10,000 a week)
Another of those underpaid left-backs being targeted by bigger clubs, Ait-Nouri knows that there is bigger money away from Wolves. Unless you’re Pablo Sarabia or Goncalo Guedes (£90,000 a week each)

Fabrizio Romano has revealed that Serie A side Como is ‘not an option’ for Marcus Rashford as the transfer expert confirmed talks with three clubs, while a PSG star is reportedly keen on a proposed move to Manchester United.

Rashford wants out of Old Trafford having announced his desire for a “new challenge” last month, but options are thin on the ground thanks to his £300,000 per week wages and his lack of interest in a move to Saudi Arabia or Turkey.

Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio revealed on Tuesday that Rashford is a ‘big priority’ for AC Milan, who have ‘proposed a loan with an option to buy’.

Di Marzio said: ‘Milan are aiming high and have identified Marcus Rashford as their big target for the winter transfer market.

‘In the last few hours, the Rossoneri club has put forward a concrete proposal for the English talent to its agents, trying to bring him to Milan with a formula that includes an initial loan, accompanied by a right of redemption.’

But Romano dismissed reports of interest from fellow Serie A side Como, managed by Cesc Fabregas, before listing the three clubs who have been in contact over a move for the England international.

Romano wrote on X: ‘Sources close to Marcus Rashford DENY all the reports and links with Serie A side Como.

‘NO talks taking place or planned… and NOT an option under consideration for Marcus/his camp.

‘Talks took place with AC Milan, Juventus, Borussia Dortmund… and more will follow.’

MORE MANCHESTER UNITED COVERAGE ON F365
👉 Kobbie Mainoo leads the Premier League’s underpaid army
👉 Kobbie Mainoo to Chelsea? Man Utd fans would rather take PSR hit
👉 Manchester United flop among five summer transfers clubs are already desperate to sell

Romano said on Wednesday that the Rashford saga is about to ‘enter its important stages’, claiming it’s ‘deal on’ though the forward’s relationship with Man Utd is ‘not broken’.

In his column for GiveMeSport, Romano said: ‘The future of Manchester United star Marcus Rashford is about to enter its important stages.

‘It’s an open race as of now, but yes, movements have finally started with his brother/agent and his camp travelling around Europe to meet with clubs, explore possibilities and consider ideas ahead of the next weeks in order to decide what to do.

‘Let’s clarify first of all that there are still some chances for Rashford to stay and continue at Manchester United. The relationship is complicated, but not completely broken at this stage.

‘Ruben Amorim wants to see more from Marcus, that’s very clear. He’s not been happy with some training sessions in recent weeks and that is the main reason why he’s been left out of the squad several times, apart from at Anfield where he missed the game because he was ill. But the story remains open.

‘Meanwhile, Rashford is considering his options and his camp has started movements. While I’m writing this column, Marcus’ brother is in Italy, ready for face-to-face talks with AC Milan who are among the clubs keen on understanding the conditions of the deal.

‘We’re not at advanced stages or not even in concrete negotiations as of now, but AC Milan are looking for an offensive player to add to their roster and Rashford is high on their list.

‘The England international’s salary is also a key part of the story; Milan are not planning to cover the full salary but could be open to including a buy option clause in negotiations. For sure, talks will take place and we will see if Milan will be able to advance on both the player and club side with Man United.’

United boss Ruben Amorim is also desperate to bring players in this month, with wing-back a particular area in which he is keen to strengthen.

He’s supposedly set his sights on Paris Saint-Germain’s Nuno Mendes, whose future in the French capital is in major doubt as he enters the final 18 months of his current deal.

Foot Mercato report that he is not satisfied with his salary and is ‘very keen’ on a reunion with former Sporting coach Amorim.

The Red Devils will have to sell before making a move for Mendes though, with PSG reportedly wanting around £50m for the Portugal international.