Manchester United have been warned they will need at least €65m to sign RB Leipzig star Christopher Nkunku this summer.
The Frenchman is establishing himself as the rising star of European football with a double against Atalanta in the Europa League quarter-finals this week, taking his tally to 30 goals and 18 assists in 43 games in all competitions this season.
That’s a tally that is likely to grow before the end of the campaign and further strengthen the chances of him making a big-money move.
Several clubs are thought to be keen on him, including Manchester United, with a report now again insisting that they were ‘interested’ in a player labelled ‘the King of Europe’.
RB Leipzig have no intention of selling their star man, though, with club chief Oliver Mintzlaff recently saying that “he will also play for us next season.”
SportBILD say in order for him ‘not to lose face’, the club will need to receive a ‘mega offer’ above Nkunku’s current market value, which is €65m.
That, though, is ‘unlikely’ to arrive from England or someone like Manchester United, especially when Nkunku’s move would have to be approved because he would count as a non-EU foreigner.
The newspaper believes that Nkunku, with just his two caps for France, is unlikely to get a work permit because of that, thus ruling out a move to Old Trafford.
However, they seem to be a little confused about the rules, which also take into account transfer fees, wages and appearances in continental competitions when it comes to awarding work permits.
If Nkunku were to move to Manchester United for €65m or more, he would tick more than enough boxes to be granted a permit, so that’s unlikely to be a hindrance as Sport BILD think it will be.
His ever-rising transfer price is the real issue, with €65m already a high price and seemingly not enough to convince Leipzig into a sale this summer.
