Manchester United

Manchester United

Premier League • England

Stunning Man Utd pursuit of former Arsenal star shut down by Fabrizio Romano as emphatic verdict given

Olivier Giroud and Mesut Ozil

Fabrizio Romano has responded to claims Manchester United could sign a top former Arsenal player with a clear verdict.

Man Utd were in action on Tuesday night and they did not disappoint the home fans at Old Trafford. They swept Bournemouth aside in a 3-0 victory to take their winning run to six games in all competitions. They have scored 15 goals and conceded just three times during that period.

Erik ten Hag’s men took the lead in the 23rd minute when Casemiro volleyed home from a great Christian Eriksen free-kick.

They went into the break 1-0 up and doubled their lead soon after the restart. Luke Shaw started off a sweeping Man Utd move and then finished it off with a composed finish from an Alejandro Garnacho ball across goal.

Rashford then rounded off the home win by bagging his 12th goal of the campaign. Shaw picked out Bruno Fernandes with a perfect cross-field pass and he set up Rashford for a simple finish.

Man Utd – and Rashford in particular – are scoring plenty of goals right now. But Ten Hag is open about his desire to land a centre-forward, saying recently: “There will be many games to follow, so I think there is a need for a new striker. We need one who can have an impact, otherwise you are just burning money and you don’t strengthen the squad.”

This will be partly down to the fact Rashford prefers to operate at left wing, rather than down the middle.

It is no surprise Man Utd have been linked with a host of strikers in the build up to the January transfer window.

Surprise name appears on Man Utd radar

Reports have named Youssoufa Moukoko, Randal Kolo Muani and Joao Felix as potential signings for the club.

Surprisingly, they were tipped to pursue former Arsenal star Olivier Giroud recently. On Tuesday, The Times claimed Man Utd recruitment chiefs to be looking at Giroud as a potential short-term striker solution.

Their interest will largely stem from the Frenchman’s contract situation. His AC Milan deal expires at the end of the season as fresh terms have yet to be announced.

Transfer expert Romano has now rejected the Man Utd claims, insisting Giroud will remain at Milan.

“Despite links with Manchester United, AC Milan can’t lose Olivier Giroud now, it’s seen as ‘impossible’ by club sources,” Romano wrote in his column for CaughtOffside.

Giroud already has Milan agreement

“Giroud is expected to sign a new deal in the next weeks or months after a verbal agreement was reached in December.”

It seems the 36-year-old has already sorted out a new contract with Milan, it is just a case of the club announcing it. Once this happens, Man Utd’s short-lived chase for Giroud will surely be over.

It would be a stunning move if Man Utd took him to Old Trafford. He is liked at Arsenal, having scored over 100 goals for them between 2012 and 2018. This helped the Gunners to win three FA Cups.

Giroud tarnished his Arsenal legacy somewhat by leaving them for Chelsea, where he went on to lift the Champions League, Europa League and another FA Cup.

The veteran striker would still make a big impact in the Premier League today. He showed at the World Cup he still has the physicality and eye for goal to cause elite defenders problems. At the tournament, he found the net four times and overtook Thierry Henry as France’s all-time top scorer.

Meanwhile, Man Utd have reportedly opened talks over the shock signing of a former England goalkeeper.