Vivell strikes Man Utd GOLD as ‘talks opened’ to sign elite game-changer

Manchester United have reportedly begun talks with the entourage of one of world football’s elite talents, in what could be a complete game-changing deal for Ruben Amorim’s men.

While the majority of transfer talk surrounding the Red Devils at the current time revolves around the signing of a new striker, club bosses remain on the lookout for top talent to bolster other areas of Amorim’s first-team squad.

The addition of another centre-back and midfielder remain big priorities for Man Utd, but the goalkeeping position is also a major talking point – despite reports that Amorim is ready to stick by Andre Onana even after his struggles last season.

That all might be about to change, however, with fresh reports stating that ‘discussions have taken place’ between the entourage of PSG’s Gianluigi Donnarumma and Old Trafford transfer chiefs in ‘recent hours’, in what would be a spectacular transfer coup for United’s director of recruitment Christopher Vivell.

Italian outlet Corriere dello Sport broke the news that United are now the favourites to snap up Donnarumma after his place at PSG came under threat from the impending arrival of highly-rated Lille star Lucas Chevalier.

The 23-year-old French stopper has verbally agreed a switch to Paris, with the reigning Ligue 1 champions looking to offload Donnarumma, given that he only has one year left on his contract and there are no signs of a new deal being signed off.

When the news first broke over the weekend of the world-class Italy stopper’s future being in doubt, United and rivals Manchester City were the two clubs rumoured to be leading the chase for his signature.

However, City announced on Tuesday that they had completed a deal to bring James Trafford back to The Etihad as Pep Guardiola’s rebuild continues at pace.

Chelsea and Galatasaray are also thought to be in the mix for Donnarumma, but the Corriere dello Sport report suggests that it’s United who have made the first concrete move to secure what would be a considerable upgrade over Onana for Amorim ahead of the new season.

The news comes following Fabrizio Romano’s comments that “Man United want a new goalkeeper but the numbers have to be right”.

Well, it appears that they might just be – if the Corriere dello Sport reports stacks up.

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Onana still backed to be Man Utd No.1

Onana, meanwhile, has the full backing of former Red Devils stopper Edwin van der Sar in a clear message to Amorim over the stopper’s Old Trafford future – despite the links to Donnarumma.

The Dutch icon told talkSPORT: “I’ve known him already for a long time. He spent four or five years at Ajax. I trained with him and saw him coming.

“He has great strengths. He’s athletic. He has good reaction saves. Good with his feet and everything. I’m sure he’s going to get over it.

“Sometimes it’s not easy. Sometimes your performances or the pressure there is.

“But I’ve seen him play for Ajax, for Inter, Champions League finals. I’m sure he’s going to be fine for next season.

“I think there are more areas where United should see if you can have a better player, a different player.

“But I don’t think the goalkeeping situation needs to be addressed now.”

Not that surprising to see Van der Sar towing the ‘goalkeeper union’ line and backing the current United No.1, but it’s very clear that Donnarumma would be a significant upgrade if the Red Devils can get a deal done.

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