On-off sale saga of Barcelona man has Man Utd, Arsenal on alert

Barcelona are reportedly ready to sell defender Samuel Umtiti this summer and Manchester United and Arsenal will be on alert.

Umtiti slipped down the pecking order at Barcelona last seaso  due to injury problems and the form of new boy Clement Lenglet, who established himself as the first-choice partner for Gerard Pique.

But over the weekend Umtiti stated his intentions to remain at the Nou Camp.

“I have a contract, I feel happy in Barcelona,” he told RTL France. “I had a complicated season, but I will still be at Barcelona next season.”

However, now, according to Goal, Umtiti is close to leaving Barca, with the Catalans willing to let him go for a reasonable price as they want to raise some capital from player sales.

Sport, as translated by Sport Witness have recently linked Umtiti with United and the France international, while the Daily Star last week claimed Arsenal had made Umtiti their number one priority for the summer transfer window.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is desperately searching for a new centre-back and Harry Maguire is understood to be at he top of his wanted list

Leicester though have a put a £90million valuation on Maguire, which has reportedly put on hold Manchester City’s move for the England defender.

Pep Guardiola is said to be keen on Maguire replacing City legend Vincent Kompany, but the price is far in excess of what City would be prepared to pay, according to the Daily Mail, which could pave the way for Solskjaer to make a move.

Umtiti though would prove to be a cheaper option.