Manchester United have held talks with Atletico Madrid over a move to sign Alvaro Morata this summer, according to reports. United coach Erik ten Hag reiterated his desire to bring in a striker in the transfer window and the Red Devils have identified the former Chelsea frontman as a potential signing.
The Premier League giants have lined up Morata to bolster Ten Hag’s attacking options, with Cristiano Ronaldo’s future uncertain and Anthony Martial sidelined through injury. The Spain international has spent the past two seasons on loan at Juventus, where he scored 32 goals in 92 appearances.
According to The Athletic, United have been told Morata is available to sign for around £29.6m (€35m) this summer, with Atletico keen to get his £200,000-a-week salary off their wage bill, and there is a ‘genuine possibility’ that a deal could be struck in the coming weeks.
The La Liga giants could be open to a loan deal but United would be required to cover his exorbitant weekly wage, while moves for Mauro Icardi and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang have been ruled out as alternative options.
READ MORE: Man Utd boss Ten Hag sends two-player transfer hint to Murtough
The 29-year-old endured a disappointing two-year spell in England with Chelsea after a £57m move from Real Madrid in 2017. Morata fired 16 goals in 47 games for the Blues, but was described as “a bit fragile” by his coach Maurizio Sarri after suffering from long droughts.
He left in an initial loan deal to join Atletico in 2019 before sealing a permanent £58m deal in 2020, but the move has not worked out for Morata, who quickly found himself benched by Diego Simeone. He rejoined his former club Juventus on a two-year loan and the Serie A giants were keen on negotiating a permanent deal, but the two clubs failed to agree a fee.
That has given United a free run to try and secure a deal for Morata after holding talks with Atletico. The club’s football director John Murtough has been left scrambling to bring in some new faces to add to Ten Hag’s squad after securing just three new signings this summer.
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Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez have arrived, but the Dutchman has been left short of squad depth after a flurry of departures including Paul Pogba and Nemanja Matic.
In addition to Morata, Murtough has spent the last three days negotiating a £18m deal for Adrien Rabiot after meeting with the player’s mother and agent, Veronique Rabiot.
The two clubs have settled on a transfer fee but personal terms are yet to be finalised, with the France international seeking a deal worth £200,000-a-week.
But it seems the Juventus midfielder could be reunited with his former team-mate Morata at Old Trafford if the pair secure their respective transfers.
The 52-year-old admitted he would have preferred to sign a striker earlier in the transfer window, although he stopped short of describing their failure to bring in a new striker or midfielder as “disastrous”.
“No, and of course once again it would be my preference because we could be starting the process earlier,” Ten Hag said in his press conference on Friday. “That’s quite clear but at the end of the day the season is long and you have to get in the right players.”
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