Man Utd face Barcelona competition for two top targets

Daniel Roberts
Victor Lindelof: Turned down Man Utd

Victor Lindelof: Turned down Man Utd

Manchester United are set to face competition from Barcelona for two of their top summer transfer targets, according to reports.

The Catalan club have sent out scouts to watch both Monaco’s Bernardo Silva and Benfica’s Victor Lindelof.

Silva has emerged as one of Europe’s hot properties, and as we revealed in January, the 22-year-old has become a top target for Jose Mourinho in the summer.

However, they face fierce competition from a host of clubs, including Spanish giants Barcelona who sent technical director Robert Fernandez to watch the youngster in Monaco’s Ligue 1 clash with Nice on Saturday.

Barca are said to be highly interested in Silva, and he would have impressed their scouts further during Monaco’s 3-0 victory over Nice at the weekend.

The 22-year-old has been a shining star for the French club this season, playing 31 times in all competitions, scoring five, while assisting his team-mates five times.

Deployed mainly as a right midfielder, Silva’s versatility is another asset in his locker, filling in on the left and central attacking positions this season.

Now the elite clubs are starting to take notice, while Manchester United are still hopeful that they can bring in the youngster when the transfer window reopens.

The Red Devils will also hope that they will still be able to bring in Lindelof in the summer, after they failed to reach an agreement to sign the defender in January.

But, just like Silva, Barcelona are keen, and also deployed scouts to watch the Benfica man this weekend during their 3-0 victory over Nacional.

Benfica looked to have accepted the defender’s impending departure, paying the 22-year-old’s former club Vasteras £4.3million to remove the sell-on clause from his contract.