Manchester United ‘on lookout’ for signing as ‘progress falters’ on contract negotiations

Manchester United are ‘on the lookout’ to see what happens with Serge Gnabry’s contract negotiations at Bayern Munich.

That’s according to Fussball Transfers, who piggyback on a report in Kicker regarding Gnabry’s renewal talks hitting the buffers.

Kicker explain that ‘progress falters’ in the talks between Bayern and Gnabry as several issues have crept up during these negotiations.

While there is a ‘constant exchange’ between Hasan Salihamidzic and Gnabry’s agent, there are hurdles for them to overcome.

The biggest issue for Gnabry is what’s been happening under Julian Nagelsmann, who has been using the German in a position the player feels is not to his strengths.

Nagelsmann has over been using Gnabry on the right-wing, but when he deploys a three-man defence, it’s seen him play as a wing-back, and that means he ‘has to get involved defensively’ and ‘cover long distances’.

It’s something Gnabry is unhappy about and have ‘repeatedly discussed’ with the Bayern boss since his arrival.

In response, Bayern have told the player that they would like to see him put in a more ‘consistent performance’. That’s an argument that isn’t backed by the numbers, which ‘prove efficiency’ according to the paper.

Thus, there is a split between him and the club, and that could cause an issue, given his contract expires in 2023.

That means he’ll be in the final year of his deal this summer, and so Bayern could be forced to sell to avoid losing him on a free transfer.

That’s where Fussball Transfers add their own slant, stating that while it would be a ‘big surprise’ if Gnabry didn’t extend, the possibility is there, and Manchester United are one of the clubs ‘on the lookout’ should it happen.

This is the first time Manchester United have been named as a potential destination, with them more often linked to teammate Kingsley Coman.

A move would make little sense either, given the money they shelled out for Jadon Sancho in the summer, even if his first year at Old Trafford has been extremely disappointing.

It’s because of that we’ll take this with a pinch of salt for now, with Gnabry more likely to resolve his issues with Bayern than move to Manchester at this point.