Manchester United will have to pay an ‘astronomical’ fee if they are to sign Edmond Tapsoba this summer.
That’s according to RP Online, who say a move away from Bayer Leverkusen is ‘very unlikely’ at this moment in time.
Manchester United are known to be on the hunt for a new centre back this summer, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer keen to find a long-term partner for Harry Maguire.
Tapsoba is one of those to have been linked, with reports in England that United had started scouting him after being alerted to his impressive performances and rapid development in the Bundesliga.
RP Online cover the situation today, stating that the list of interested parties ‘could hardly be more exquisite’, but a change is ‘very unlikely’.
They explain that it is ‘nothing special’ to see rumours surrounding Tapsoba, but the ever-growing list of clubs that are reportedly interested in him is ‘remarkable’.
Manchester United are one of them, and that is ‘understandable’ as the defender plays ‘consistently at a good to high level, shies with clean duels’ and has ‘speed in head and legs, impressive serenity, strong positional play and an overview of the structure of the game.’
That is a combination of skills which are rare and sought after, hence the apparent interest in him from around Europe.
Those are skills that Bayer Leverkusen will need in future, though, with Sven Bender and brother Lars Bender retiring and Jonathan Tah having made it clear he wants a move away.
Add more potential exits in the shape of Aleksandar Dragovic, Tin Jedvaj and Panagiotis Retsos, and there will be a big hole in Leverkusen’s defence.
With that in mind, letting Tapsoba go would be a major mistake, and it would only be sanctioned for an ‘astronomical’ sum ‘beyond all economic reason’.
That is something even the biggest clubs cannot afford to do given the economic climate caused by the Coronavirus pandemic.
Thus, a move to somewhere like Manchester United seems unlikely, with it ‘more likely’ that Tapsoba will be staying in Germany for the time being.
