Always planning on looking for a centre-back this summer, Manchester United seem ever closer to getting their man in Villarreal’s Eric Bailly.
News broke over the weekend from Spain that José Mourinho and his new club had bid for the Ivory Coast international, and things have gone rather quickly since then.
Sport on Tuesday have an article stating that Barcelona (also in the market for a new defender) were given the chance to sign the 22-year-old, but quickly turned down the offer once Manchester United had made their bid, knowing they wouldn’t be able to compete.
Borussia Dortmund were also interested, but turned their attention to Barcelona’s Marc Bartra when they saw the opportunity for a quick steal.
The Catalan newspaper say United’s deal for Bailly could be announced shortly, claiming it’s “very likely” the defender will travel in the coming hours to England to pass his medical ahead of his move to Manchester United.
The deal is reported as being around €32m (£25m) + bonuses, and Barcelona miss out once again on a centre-back they’ve been following for a while.
Tom Coast.
