Whatever happens in the final days of the window, it seems Manchester United and Cristiano Ronaldo seem destined to be at the centre of it.
While United are determined to strengthen their squad, Ronaldo is equally keen to get out of Old Trafford and find himself a Champions League club.
At the moment his options are limited but Jorge Mendes is busy weaving a web and that’s seen Napoli drawn into the mix.
Reports earlier this summer suggested Napoli president Aurelio de Laurentiis could be tempted into bringing the Portuguese superstar to the club and Mendes was working out the finances to make it happen.
That suggestion went quiet but has picked up again over the last week, with a potential swap deal including Victor Osimhen now being mooted.
That suggestion has been bubbling away over this week and there’s now been a slew of reports from various media outlets in Italy today, all relayed by Calcio Napoli 24.
First there is Sky Italy, who say that De Laurentiis is ‘thinking about’ bringing Ronaldo to Napoli and rumours about a move from Manchester United ‘true and confirmed’.
This is partly backed up by RAI Sport, who say the Napoli president has sent a ‘counter proposal’ to Manchester United after they bid for Osimhen.
He’s now asking for €120m for the Nigerian striker plus the entirety of Ronaldo’s wages, €23.5m a year, to be paid by United for the entirety of his loan spell with the Serie A side.
Radio Kiss Kiss Napoli, meanwhile, back up the idea that Napoli want Ronaldo’s wages paid, although their information is that Manchester United would pay 75% rather than 100% of them
This comes via Valter De Maggio, who spoke about the situation on the Radio Goal programme.
“Mendes would bring Cristiano Ronaldo to Napoli with 75% payment of fees,” he said.
“In addition, there is the possibility Osimhen at Manchester United, but Napoli are asking for €130m. The player could also get a €12m offer.”
Radio Punto Nuovo then provide information on Osimhen’s stance on the whole situation, given he could be shipped out to Old Trafford.
According to their information, Mendes’ plan involves the striker going to Manchester United and Ronaldo replacing him.
This has been boosted by Osimhen, who is ‘enthusiastic’ about the idea and shown a ‘willingness’ to make the move, particularly as he’d see an ‘important increase’ in his salary.
Mendes is working on it and ‘trying to weave contacts’ between the two clubs, with talks ongoing but the deal a difficult one to pull off because of the tight timeframe and the figures involved.
The Portuguese super-agent is clearly hard at work, though, and the situation is picking up pace in Italy, so expect more big developments as he puts in the effort to get Ronaldo out of Manchester United.
