Forgotten Man Utd man focus of transfer talks as club chiefs fly in to ‘advance’ on first bid
Manchester United midfielder Andreas Pereira is the focus of transfer talks after club chiefs flew into England to ‘advance’ their first bid, as per reports.
Pereira has been left out in the cold at Old Trafford since the 2019/20 season. A loan move to Lazio last campaign has been followed up with a year at Flamengo in Brazil. So far it has been successful for the 26-year-old.
He scored five goals and assisted another in 18 league appearances in 2021. It is now the off season in South America.
And Pereira, who has one cap for Brazil, is set to remain in his home country from the start of next season until June.
However, Flamengo are hopeful it will be longer than that. They recently submitted an €8m bid to the Red Devils.
Having not yet heard anything back on that offer, officials Bruno Spindel and Marcos Braz have travelled to hold a face-to-face meeting.
That’s according to Globo Esporte, who claim Pereira is one of their transfer priorities.
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As such, they want to ‘strengthen ties with the British’ and ‘advance with the purchase’.
They may have some work to do, though, because there is already a €20m buy option in his loan deal.
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There’s clearly disagreement between the two clubs on how much Pereira is worth. But United may have to take what they get get.
Having been with the club since 2012, he looks set to leave at least when his contract expires in less than 18 month’s time.
So the Old Trafford hierarchy will have to cash in this summer or risk losing him for free in 2023.
Utd team news for Boro
Meanwhile, Edinson Cavani will be among five absentees for Manchester United’s FA Cup tie against Middlesbrough, but Paul Pogba will return.
United come back from their winter break with the fourth-round clash at Old Trafford on Friday. The Red Devils got through after beating Aston Villa, which albeit did not rank as one of their greatest performances.
Most of the United squad have enjoyed a break of late. But their African and South American stars were on international duty.
Uruguay and Brazil stars Cavani and Alex Telles, respectively, will therefore not feature. Meanwhile, defender Eric Bailly has an ankle problem after playing 120 minutes in Ivory Coast’s Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final defeat to Egypt.
However, Frenchman Pogba spent the break working on his fitness. He has recently come back from a lengthy spell out with injury and will return against Boro, as will Luke Shaw after his own absence.
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