Man Utd open ‘concrete talks’ over spectacular Viktor Gyokeres transfer as Amorim learns when deal will go through

Manchester United have reportedly held ‘concrete talks’ with the representatives of Viktor Gyokeres as Ruben Amorim eyes a reunion with the Sporting CP striker.

Amorim has enjoyed a good start to life at Old Trafford, with two wins and a draw under his belt so far, but his first big test will come against Arsenal at the Emirates on Wednesday night.

The Portuguese coach has already informed the Man Utd board that he feels the squad needs strengthening before it can compete for trophies and striker reinforcements is reportedly one of his top priorities.

According to journalist Florian Plettenberg, Man Utd are stepping up their attempts to prise Gyokeres away from Sporting CP, but they need to offload players before bringing him in. Local rivals Manchester City are also keen on the 26-year-old and both clubs will likely have to wait until next summer to strike a deal.

“Manchester United have now made initial concrete talks regarding Viktor Gyokeres and a potential move in the summer,” Plettenberg posted on X.

“The Red Devils are now fully involved. However, [a deal] will require sales first!

“Manchester City have also intensified their efforts in recent days. Hugo Viana (Man City’s incoming Director of Football) is currently pushing hard in the pursuit of Gyokeres.”

Gyokeres has an £83million (€100m / $105m) release clause in his contract with Sporting CP and considering his current form, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see multiple clubs trigger it in the coming months.

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Man Utd step up striker hunt

There is no doubt that Amorim would love to reunite with Gyokeres at Man Utd. He has already ruled out a swoop for the centre-forward in January, but a transfer next summer may well be on the cards.

“If I start joking about this Gyokeres situation I’ll get in trouble,” Amorim said last month. “[Lisbon] is my city, this is my country, so I’ll respect it. Viktor has to stay [with Sporting] until the end of the season and then his life will probably go somewhere else.”

Man Utd have been scouring the market for a new striker for some time, despite the fact they’ve got two young, high-potential forwards in Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee, with the latter only joining this past summer.

Zirkzee has been linked with a shock return to the Serie A in recent weeks after an underwhelming start to life in the Premier League. But a start and two goals against Everton on Sunday suggests that Amorim will give him every chance to succeed at Old Trafford.

In any case, the Red Devils will need to sell players to afford Gyokeres’ £83m price tag. As previously reported, Casemiro, Antony, Christian Eriksen, Victor Lindelof and Harry Maguire are some of the players Amorim is willing to sell in the January transfer window.

Amorim signed Gyokeres for Sporting in the summer of 2023 and went on to score 66 goals in 68 appearances under the manager. If Gyokeres could have a similar impact at Man Utd, he could turn them into Premier League title challengers once again.

Man Utd round-up: Major transfer blow / Real Madrid want Greenwood

Meanwhile, Man Utd have reportedly received a significant blow in their pursuit of Bayern Munich left-back Alphonso Davies.

The Canadian international’s contract with the Bundesliga giants is set to expire at the end of the season, which has led to Man Utd, Barcelona and Real Madrid all showing interest in signing him on a free transfer.

However, recent reports suggest that in a major U-turn, Davies has ‘reduced his salary demands and is getting closer to extending his contract with Bayern Munich beyond 2025’.

The report adds that Davies ‘regrets’ signalling his intention to leave the German club and is now in full cooperation to stay.

In other news, Real Madrid and Barcelona are both ‘closely monitoring’ the situation of former Man Utd forward Mason Greenwood ahead of a potential 2025 transfer.

The report suggests Greenwood ‘could well be worth’ £50million by next summer. If he is to go for that fee, the Red Devils could land themselves a £25million windfall.

Indeed, they inserted a large sell-on fee in Greenwood’s sale to Marseille, and the report states that is around 50 per cent.

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IN FOCUS: Gyokeres stats under Amorim at Sporting