Manchester United have been linked with a swoop for Arsenal star Ainsley Maitland-Niles, according to a report from Germany.
United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has keen to land a full-back this summer, previously interested in Sergio Reguilon with the club believed to be close to a deal for Porto star Alex Telles.
But now an outlandish report from Sport1reporter Florian Plettenberg suggests that a deal for Ainsley is close.
Florian wrote on Twitter: “To my information #MUFC wants @MaitlandNiles! Deal and paperwork’s are up to 80% already.
“Transfer with the English national should be completed in the next days (€22m + add ons). @ManUtd needs reinforcements.”
Solskjaer is highly unlikely to bring the Arsenal star in should Telles complete his deal.
Indeed, the United head coach is expected to be more focused on trimming his roster and potentially raise funds for transfers.
Sky Sports reporter Dharmesh Sheth has suggested that the 20-times English champions might need to lose stars before they bring some more in.
“Departures are proving very, very difficult for United and there seems to be a feeling of surprise at Old Trafford that they are unable to get suitable offers for some of their players,” he told Sky Sports News’ The Transfer Show.
“You could argue United’s current squad has an element of imbalance about it. I was looking at that squad and I’ve counted eight players who could play central defence. It’s clear United want to trim the numbers in that area.”
