Manchester United are reportedly battling with Arsenal over a deal to sign Inter Milan star Alessandro Bastoni, as per a recent report.
The Red Devils currently have Harry Maguire, Matthijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro, Ayden Heaven, and Lisandro MartÃnez as centre-back options. However, De Ligt has been out injured over the last few months.
MartÃnez has had several fitness problems in recent years and has just returned from a serious knee issue. Maguire, meanwhile, has entered the final few months of his current contract and is expected to leave as a free agent in the summer.
Yoro and Heaven are still very young and need time to develop. So, it appears the Old Trafford club are planning to sign a new centre-back during the offseason.
As per a recent report (via TEAMtalk), Man Utd are interested in Bastoni and could make a concrete approach to secure his services. However, Inter Milan consider Bastoni ‘priceless’ and have no intention of letting him leave.
So, the 20-time English champions will have to launch a ‘significant’ bid to persuade the Italian giants to sell him, with his existing deal set to run until 2028.
Apart from United, Arsenal are also in this race and have been monitoring his performances closely ahead of a potential summer swoop. Moreover, Barcelona and Real Madrid are also plotting a swoop.
Battle
Bastoni is a left-footed centre-back and has enjoyed great success at the Giuseppe Meazza Stadium over the years, winning multiple Serie A titles and several domestic cup competitions.
He is one of the best defenders in the Italian top flight and has established himself as an undisputed starter in the Italian national team’s starting line-up.
Arsenal currently have Gabriel Magalhaes, Piero Hincapié, and Riccardo Calafiori as options to deploy on the left side of the centre-back position. So, Mikel Arteta doesn’t need to invest more money to add further depth to this position unless anyone leaves.
Therefore, Bastoni, valued at around £70m by Transfermarkt, would be better off joining Man Utd over the North London club if he were to leave Inter at the end of this…..
