Man Utd transfer news: Schweinsteiger in Deadline Day stand-off

Man Utd transfer news: deal for Valencia defender Mustafi?

02 March

Everyone has an eye on the transfer gossip these days, even a magazine like Newsweek. The esteemed organ has taken a break from its diet of Donald Trump, the war in Syria and Chinese expansionism to claim that Manchester United could be about to make a move for Valencia defender Shkodran Mustafi.

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The Spanish side are currently managed by former United stalwart Gary Neville, and the English side are keen to take advantage of the connection, according to website Donbalon.com. Newsweek has picked up on that and says that the Old Trafford outfit have "expressed a willingness” to take Mustafi, who has also attracted interest from Bayern Munich and Barcelona.

The 23-year-old central defender has won nine caps for Germany, and was a member of their 2014 World Cup-winning side and it's believed he wants a new challenge after spending the last two seasons in Spain. Newsweek says Neville is a keen admirer of Mustafi - who had a spell in his youth with the Everton academy - but is prepared to let him go if the price is right.

According to the Daily Express, United "are planning a bid of around £23m" for striker Domenico Berardi. He is not yet a household name, but that may be because he's been plying his trade this season for lowly Sassuolo in the Italian Serie A. But the Express says Berardi is co-owned by Juventus and they may be willing to facilitate a sale to United in the summer, although Bayern Munich and Barcelona "are also said to be monitoring" the 21-year-old sharpshooter.

Man Utd transfer news: Everton to offload £65m Lukaku?

01 March

Days after it was announced that Farhad Moshiri was to buy a 49.9 per cent stake in Everton, Manchester United are being touted as one of the first beneficiaries by The Sun, which claims the news has given the Manchester club a "boost" in their pursuit of Romelu Lukaku.

With Moshiri pledging to provide £100m for transfers in a bid to turn the Toffees into title contenders, the Sun says United's hopes of agreeing a £65m deal with Everton have been strengthened as a result.

If they offload the forward, they will lose their main striker but with the money made from Lukaku's sale, plus Moshiri's £100m war chest, Everton gaffer Roberto Martinez will be able to bring in a string of big names for next season, explains the paper.

Meanwhile, website Caughtoffside claim that United scouts have been watching Omar Elabdellaoui in action for Olympiacos recently and the Norwegian right-back could be a summer signing. Apparently United tabled a £7m bid in January and although that was rejected, they haven't given up hope and will make a new and improved offer in the summer.

Man Utd transfer news: Ronaldo row prompts Real Madrid exit talk

29 February

Real Madrid big head Cristiano Ronaldo is once more being linked with a summer move to Old Trafford following events in Spain over the weekend.

The Portuguese preener let rip at his teammates to Spanish rag Marca after Real's defeat to Atletico Madrid on Saturday. "If we were all at my level, maybe we would be leaders,"snarled Ronaldo. "I don't want to disrespect anyone, but when the best players aren't available it's harder to win."

According to the Manchester Evening News, the outburst "will hasten the 31-year-old's departure from the Bernabeu". The MEN goes on to report that the El Confidencial paper has claimed Ronaldo is "set to make way for the arrival of Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski". As a result, United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward is stepping up his efforts to lure Ronaldo back to the club he left in 2009.

Meanwhile Metro reports that United "have approached" Inter Milan with an enquiry about centre-back Miranda. The news initially appeared in Calciomercato, which stated that Miranda, who only joined Inter in the summer of 2015, is seen by United as the sort of tough-tackling hard-man they need in their defence. Metro says that Jose Mourinho - the man tipped to replace Louis van Gaal in the summer as manager - is an "admirer" of Miranda and expects to see off competition from Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich for the hand of the beefy Brazilian defender.

Man Utd transfer news: Real Madrid raid for James Rodriguez

26 Februrary

Zinedine Zidane continues to lay down the law at Real since replacing Rafael Benitez as coach. According to Metro, the Frenchman has put Colombian star James Rodriguez on the transfer list, news that is sure to arouse United's interest.

The forward is experiencing a difficult second season at the Bernabeu and Metro says the Spanish giants are "ready to make a big loss on the player they signed for around £71m in 2014". Spanish media says United are favourites for the 24-year-old although much will depend on the managerial situation at Old Trafford and whether the club - given Rodriguez's "attitude problems" - decide to take a punt on the player, who has struggled to establish himself in Spain.

Joining James at Old Trafford could be Fiorentina frontman Federico Bernardeschi because, according to Talksport, Manchester United "have made a £22m bid" for the young striker.

Taking its cue from Italian rag Gazzetta dello Sport, Talksport claims that the Red Devils have been tracking Bernardeschi for a while but decided to make their move after his goal-scoring performance for Fiorentina against Tottenham in last week's Europa League clash.

The two sides met again at White Hart Lane last night, and if the reports are accurate Bernardeschi will be back in England permanently as of next season.

Chelsea were also keen on Bernardeschi at one stage but they're set to miss out because of the "uncertainty surrounding who their next manager will be".

Meanwhile United and Arsenal will have to accept defeat in their tussle to sign Juventus centre-back Daniele Rugani. The Daily Express reports that the 21-year-old, linked to both the Premier League clubs in recent months, has just penned a year-long extension to his Juventus deal.

Man Utd transfer news: Sanches and Bale to sign this summer

25 February

So confident is Renato Sanches that he's on his way to Old Trafford, he's already packed his bags. That's the claim made by Portuguese rag Record and passed on by Caughtoffside.com, which says the 18-year-old midfielder will join the Red Devils in the summer.

Apparently a 'gentleman's agreement' has been agreed between Benfica and United, and though nothing official has been signed it's good enough for Sanches to have packed his thermals and anorak.

But Caughtoffside warns the teenager playmaker that "several key factors are still to be sorted out" between the two clubs, namely the fee. It's believed that Benfica want around £35m up front, as well as a further £16m "in added bonuses and clauses". United are hoping to negotiate the Portuguese outfit down between now and the summer.

Might United be back in with a shout of landing Gareth Bale at the end of the season? Spanish paper AS reported recently that Real Madrid are "considering selling the 26-year-old in the summer" because of his injury problems, and that is surely of interest to United, who were strongly linked to the Welsh winger last year.

But Sky Sports says Bale's agent, Jonathan Barnett, has dismissed the story as preposterous "It's a completely rubbish story made by an irresponsible and totally ill-informed journalist," he fumed.

Nonetheless Bale has earned an unwanted reputation as the 'new Arjen Robben' in some Spanish quarters, because of his shared physical frailty, and it could be that Real decide to sell sooner rather than later in case his injury record lowers his market value.

That's what The Sun thinks, the paper saying that as a result of the growing concern over Bale in Madrid there is "a better chance of putting together a package to sign Bale than [United] had thought". But the Sun also claims that United "are likely to fail in their bid to sign Neymar" after the Brazilian told his representatives he's no wish to leave Barcelona.

Man Utd transfer news: Bartra and Laporte wanted in defence

24 February

One player absent from the Barcelona squad that travelled to Arsenal on Tuesday was defender Marc Bartra. The 25-year-old academy graduate has struggled for game time this season under coach Luis Enrique and was omitted from the squad for last night's Champions League clash with the Gunners.

Not surprisingly, Bartra is increasingly disenchanted with life at the Camp Nou and according to Talksport, that dissatisfaction has reached the ears of United. Apparently, they have "expressed an interest" in the defender, particularly as word has it Barcelona will let him go for as little as £9m.

Passing on news reported by Spanish rag Mundo Deportivo, Talksport says the Spain international's release clause was originally set at £20m, but that has decreased to just £9m "due to a lack of appearances" in recent months.

Another defender United are said to be lining up is Athletic Bilbao centre-back Aymeric Laporte. According to Spanish media outlet Fichajes.net, Barcelona, Real Madrid and United are all after the French defender.

The 21-year-old comes with a £40m release clause and though Laporte has spoken of his wish to remain at Bilbao, the club he joined as a 15-year-old, it's believed the Spanish side will sell if the release clause is met. Fichajes.net adds Athletic would "prefer to sell him to a Premier League side" rather than see Laporte joining one of their La Liga rivals.

Man Utd transfer news: confusion over £47m Felipe Anderson move

23 February

Utter confusion reigns at Manchester United this morning, and it's not because one of Louis van Gaal's note pads has gone missing. Rather it's the on-off transfer of Felipe Anderson to Old Trafford, with the Daily Express one of several papers to report on the mayhem caused by Lazio's "shock U-turn" over a £47m transfer.

It was claimed on Monday morning that a deal had been agreed for the 22-year-old Brazilian with club president Claudio Lotito confirming that they would be selling Anderson to United at the end of the season.

That brought a sharp response from the club, who issued a statement in which they said: "In reference to statements attributed to president Claudio Lotito regarding the alleged sale of Felipe Anderson, Lazio can confirm they are devoid of any foundation."

The Express says that United were linked with Anderson last summer but had a £37.6m offer rebuffed by the Italian club with Lazio's sporting director Igli Tare commenting: "We turned down a €50m (£37.6m) offer from Manchester United on August 27 and nothing has changed since then. He's worth much more."

Whether Lazio will sell the winger to United remains to be seen but it's alleged in some quarters the South America is keen to make the move to England.