Man Utd VERY ‘confident’ of signing £80m-rated maestro as Bayern Munich accelerate Rashford move

Manchester United are increasingly confident of signing West Ham star Mateus Fernandes, while a Bayern Munich bid for Marcus Rashford is ‘imminent’, which comes as a significant boost for INEOS.

The Red Devils are set to sign Atalanta midfielder Ederson, but their midfield revamp won’t stop there, with at least one more addition in the middle of the park wanted by Michael Carrick.

With Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson likely out of reach as Manchester City pursue a mega-money deal for him, Fernandes is the exciting plan B option Man Utd have settled on.

Man Utd ‘confident’ of making West Ham star second signing

TEAMtalk transfer insider, Fraser Fletcher, revealed in an update earlier today that Man Utd are set to launch a first bid for West Ham star Fernandes.

We understand the Red Devils are confident of rapidly closing out the signing, despite expectations that West Ham will reject their opening offer.

Having been admirers of Fernandes for months, they have already held talks with his representatives over a prospective move to Old Trafford.

Man Utd are now accelerating their pursuit and are prepared to launch a first formal offer to West Ham in the coming days.

While sources are unable to verify the amount Man Utd will bid, it is understood that any offer will come in for some distance below the £80m that the Hammers are seeking for the 21-year-old Portuguese.

West Ham, despite their negotiating hand being weakened slightly by relegation, feel their price is reflective of both Fernandes’ rise and the current market for central midfielders.

As a result, the first bid is likely to fall short. However, that does not mean negotiations will be shut down and, on the contrary, United’s opening offer will instead signal what is expected to be extensive negotiations between the clubs as they look to settle on a fee.

Crucially, sources believe a deal will be done, and there is a growing confidence that Fernandes will become summer signing number two.

READ NEXT – Liverpool leading Man Utd in race for £43.1m-rated winger as Reds ‘formally register interest’

Marcus Rashford on course for Bayern Munich switch

Meanwhile, the drama surrounding Marcus Rashford’s future continues.

TEAMtalk reported earlier today how Bayern Munich are growing increasingly confident of securing the England international’s signature.

The German giants have held positive talks with Rashford’s representatives and are preparing an opening bid in the region of €25million (£21.5m /  $29m).

The 28-year-old had a successful loan spell with Barcelona this season, notching 14 goals and 14 assists and playing a key role in the Catalans’ LaLiga triumph.

Barca had been keen to retain Rashford, but so far opted against activating their €30million (£26m / $35m) purchase clause, which expires in just three days time (June 15).

Instead, the LaLiga champions attempted to secure another loan deal, leveraging on the fact that they believed Rashford was very keen to stay.

This annoyed INEOS and Man Utd, who had no plans to reintegrate Rashford into the squad, but wanted to recoup a transfer fee for his services.

Now, Bayern are pushing for a deal, and the positive talks with Rashford’s representatives suggest he’ll be heading to Bavaria on a permanent deal.

Cucurella responds to Man Utd links

In other news, Chelsea left-back Marc Cucurella has played down speculation that he could join Man Utd this summer.

Carrick’s side are looking to strengthen at left-back as they want more competition for Luke Shaw, and to give them the option of playing Patrick Dorgu in a more advanced role.

Cucurella has been heavily linked with moves away from Chelsea and Man Utd are reportedly admirers of the Spaniard.

However, Cucurella has said in a recent interview that he is “very happy” where he is. Read his comments in full HERE.

READ MORE – Man Utd to ‘splurge £100m’ after Elliot Anderson blow as INEOS’ next three top targets revealed