Manchester United reportedly have “no chance” of signing Chelsea forward Christopher Nkunku permanently this month as this deal hinges on a “big if”.
The Red Devils are closing in on their first January signing as Lecce left-back Patrick Dorgu is expected to complete his move to the Premier League giants in the coming days.
Man Utd may not be finished there, though. They are also in the market for a new forward and Chelsea star Nkunku is among their options.
Nkunku has shone for Chelsea in domestic and European cup competitions, but he’s barely featured in the Premier League and could depart this month.
Man Utd and Bayern Munich are linked with Nkunku with it suggested that he could be part of a swap deal including Alejandro Garnacho.
Head coach Ruben Amorim has a limited budget this month, so they need more outgoings before the transfer window closes on Monday night.
United’s financial situation means they have “no chance” of signing Nkunku permanently this month, but Sky Sports’ Dharmesh Sheth reckons this deal could hinge on Garnacho.
“Manchester United have looked into the possibility of a deal for Christopher Nkunku, but there would only be a loan,” Sheth said on the Transfer Talk podcast.
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“They’ve got no chance of doing a permanent deal for Nkunku. It will cost them too much money.
“But clearly, if United, and it’s a big if, did business with Chelsea for [Alejandro] Garnacho, they’ll already be talking then.
“And it would smooth the way for Nkunku to maybe make a move on loan to Old Trafford.
“But Nkunku is interested in Bayern Munich as well, and they maybe have a player in Mathys Tel that Chelsea could be interested in.”
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Interestingly, Amorim has praised Garnacho ahead of their Europa League match against FCSB on Thursday night.
“I’m happy to have Garnacho here,” Amorim said. “He’s improving a lot. He’s a young talented guy.
“You want to work with these guys with talent. That’s what drives the coaches to improve the team; to have these kind of players that you know they are going to improve a lot.
“In football, especially when we are in these situations, sometimes it’s hard, but I don’t want to focus on that. I’m really happy to have Garnacho playing tomorrow.”
On potential signings, he added: “What I can say is that the club wants to improve the team. That is the most important thing.
“Everybody is doing things, everything, to improve the team. If we can do it or not; sometimes it doesn’t depend just from the club or even the player.
“We are focused on improving the team, but also we are really focused on not doing mistakes that are going to be hard in the future to go back.”
