Man Utd on alert as France wonderkid opens door to Old Trafford move

Eduardo Camavinga TEAMtalk

Brilliant young France midfielder Eduardo Camavinga will not be signing a new contract with his Ligue 1 club Stade Rennes, according to a reliable source.

The 18-year-old, who has been tracked by Manchester United and Real Madrid, has opted against extending his time with the Ligue 1 side. According to The Athletic the midfielder will reject the offer of an extension, partly because of the French side’s plan to insert an expensive release clause into his new deal.

Camavinga, who has been capped three times by France, is out of contract in June 2022. So Rennes will most likely look to cash in on the player this summer or in January 2022.

Rennes will be looking for an auction-like scenario for Camavinga. The player has made 30 Ligue 1 appearances and featured four times in the Champions League.

Camavinga signed with English super agent Jonathan Barnett in December prompting rumours of a move to the Premier League. Indeed Barnett said recently: “Camavinga can play next year in the Premier League. He is that good.

“Whether he will or not, I don’t know.

“His background has been tough if you know what he went through as a refugee and the burning of his home.

“But his character is amazingly strong. He is not your average 18-year-old. Playing in front of 100,000 people is not going to scare him. He’s a lovely boy and I think he’s going to be a superstar.”

Barnett has high-profile players such as Luke Shaw and Dean Henderson, so the links to United are obvious. However, Barnett also brokered Gareth Bale’s huge move to Real Madrid. So Barnett has previously had close dealings with Bernabeu chiefs.

Rennes are believed to have valued him at €80m, but after moving agents Rennes dropped their value to €50m in January

It’s unclear now exactly where the French club will place the price tag on the player, but they will not want to lose him for a compensation fee next summer.

United weigh up Haaland deal

Meanwhile, Erling Haaland is being weighed up as a viable transfer target by Manchester United with officials reportedly concerned by their futile efforts to sign Jadon Sancho last summer.

Both players belong to German side Borussia Dortmund. And after United ultimately failed in their bid to sign Sancho before the season started they are considering whether or not to pursue Haaland.

The forward is widely believed to be a player Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wants to be reunited with. Solskjaer has admitted “following” the 20-year-old. The pair worked together at Molde. Solskjaer even flew out to try and convince Haaland to sign for United in January 2020.

That ended in failure with the Norway international signing for BVB where he has continued his rapid development.

Ed Woodward and John Murtough and Co are contemplating another effort to sign Haaland, who has scored 49 goals in 52 games for Dortmund since arriving from RB Salzburg. The Athletic though are reporting that United are unsure about the viable nature of a deal.

United pursued Jadon Sancho all last summer, but BVB were steadfast in their £108m valuation of the England winger. The Bundesliga side even placed a August deadline on any deal, ahead of their pre-season training camp. And as soon as the deadline passed without an acceptable offer from United, the ‘not for sale’ sign went up.

United are keen to avoid another fiasco, especially considering the large amount of money that will be in play.

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