Manchester United remain interested in Juventus midfielder Douglas Luiz but a deal on the deadline of the winter window will prove “difficult” as the two clubs are “not close” to an agreement, according to a report.
Sami Mokbel (Daily Mail) reveals the Red Devils “have an interest” in the 26-year-old, who joined Juventus from Aston Villa in the summer, but a deal remains an unlikely prospect.
Manchester City and Nottingham Forest have joined United in the hunt for Luiz as the Brazilian international has fallen down the pecking order in Turin under Juventus manager Thiago Motta.
Luiz previously thrived under Unai Emery at Villa Park, establishing himself as one of the best central midfielders in the Premier League last season.
This form earned him the £42 million switch to Serie A but, only six months on, the Old Lady were open to his departure. However, the Italian club were reported to only be considering a transfer or a loan with an obligation to buy.
United, as well as local rivals City, were believed to only be interested in loans with options to buy. This leads Mokbel to contend a deal late in the window will be “difficult” to agree.
“Manchester United have an interest but [the] prospect of any agreement with Juventus [is] not close,” the reporter concludes.
It constitutes yet another blow for United as the club look increasingly unlikely to be able to bring in a much-needed centre-forward before tonight’s 11pm deadline.
An upgrade in central midfield on Casemiro and Christian Eriksen, which Luiz certainly would provide, would have buttressed Ruben Amorim’s squad with energy and technical quality in the middle of the park.
It would also have enabled Bruno Fernandes to return to one of the attacking slots, after being deployed in midfield in recent weeks due to a lack of suitable options to partner Manuel Ugarte.
Luiz, on a loan , even if it was an expensive deal, would have helped provide a temporary solution to a major weakness in the United team, while the Brazilian’s new teammate – Randal Kolo Muani, signed on a loan move from Paris Saint-Germain – could have helped Amorim’s continued issues up front.
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Darragh Fox
Darragh is a writer for The Peoples Person who spent three years as a history graduate slowly realising football was by far the most interesting thing to write about.
