Man Utd now 'want to book' deal for £33m UCL star 'as soon as possible' - report
Manchester United have their sights on signing one of Sporting Lisbon’s best emerging talents, according to Portuguese outlet A Bola.
The Red Devils have had an underwhelming start to the Premier League season. They are languishing 13th in the table with only 15 points.
However, there is only a four-point gap to the top four and United will be aiming to close the deficit under new manager Ruben Amorim.
Amorim has already promised that he won’t be signing any Sporting CP players in January, but he did not rule out any summer acquisitions.
A Bola now claim that United ‘want to book’ a summer deal for Geovany Quenda ‘as soon as possible’.
Quenda could be a future star
The 17-year-old made his first-team debut under Amorim at Sporting CP earlier this term and he has already emerged as a key figure.
Quenda, who has largely played as a right wing-back, has two goals and two assists from 18 appearances.
Aside from his goal contributions, the youngster has also excelled with other key attributes.
He has won 62 percent of his duels and 64 percent of his take-ons with three recoveries on average.
The youngster has the traits to become an elite winger or wing-back. United seem keen on landing his signature in advance for next season.
United won’t be able to sign the wonderkid in January anyway, considering Brexit rules don’t permit registration of Under-18 foreign players.
Quenda has a hefty release clause of £84 million in his contract, but A Bola claim that United will make an initial offer in the region of £33m.
In our view, the Red Devils may have to pay a higher fee, particularly if other elite European clubs join the pursuit in the forthcoming months.
Amorim showed willingness to trust Quenda at right wing-back despite his lack of experience. He could make the position his own at United too.
The new manager is expected to operate with a 3-4-2-1 formation with the Red Devils.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com & Sofascore.com