Goals have been hard to come by for Manchester United this season with the Red Devils failing to score in their last three Premier League games while netting fewer than even 19th-placed Leicester City.
Rasmus Hojlund does not look like he is ready to lead the line while Marcus Rashford has already declared his intention to leave his boyhood club.
And summer signing Joshua Zirkzee seems to be heading out the exit doors after Ruben Amorim’s brutal substitution call against Newcastle with Juventus among a trio of Serie A clubs eyeing him in January.
The Portuguese head coach wants INEOS to acquire Viktor Gyokeres this window but owing to his release clause, a deal hinges on the club’s ability to move the Mancunian on.
Goalscorer needed
However, owing to his massive asking price coupled with his humongous wages, a loan exit might be the only course of action possible. And due to the club’s situation with PSR, not a lot of business can be done without player sales.
But according to Sport Witness, who have relayed journalist Enrico Camelio’s interview with Radio Radio, United could be provided with an alternative with the Turin-based club mulling over a swap option.
They are open to letting Dusan Vlahovic join the Red Devils in exchange for Zirkzee, with manager Thiago Motta a fan of the 23-year-old, having worked together during their time in Bologna.
And working under a manager who trusts him and knows how to use him might just be just what the Netherlands international wants after a difficult start in red.
“We understand that the footballer (Zirkzee) is not at all happy in Manchester, he has not settled in and is not doing well. In Italy he had done well in Parma and then very well in Bologna precisely with Motta.”
Swap deal with Juventus
“We are working on it, but there is an idea of an exchange between Vlahovic and Zirkzee, let’s see how the situation evolves. The idea is plausible; the Dutchman would find the coach who consecrated him again,” Camelio said.
The Serbian has 12 goals this season including one against Manchester City in the Champions League this season, and has outscored all three United strikers.
But he has never fully captured the kind of form he had shown in Fiorentina colours during his time with the Bianconeri.
That is why it might be a risk to hedge all bets on the 24-year-old, especially with United staring at a relegation scrap and goals are the need of the hour.
United would ideally like to land Gyokeres or even Victor Osimhen, but owing due to their funds crunch, a swap deal might not be out of the question.
Feature image Alessandro Sabattini via Getty Images
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Ayantan Chowdhury
Ayantan has worked for 10 years in the Indian sports media industry, writing for the biggest newspapers and websites but his heart was always set on writing about his favourite club. Currently an editor at The Peoples Person. You can follow him on X: @ayantanc_25
