With Paul Pogba seemingly set to run down his contract at Manchester United and Ralf Rangnick allegedly happy to see that happen, a new midfielder will be needed in the summer.
And, if they are going to lose the Frenchman on a free, what better way to replace him with a free transfer of their own, which is where Franck Kessie comes in.
The Ivory Coast international’s contract expires in June 2022, and despite Milan’s best efforts to renew him, they are yet to meet his wage demands.
Previous reports suggested they aren’t ready to go beyond €6m/year, which is considerably short of what he wants, but that shouldn’t be a problem for Manchester United.
🚨📲 Rinnovo #Kessie, posizioni sempre distanti tra #Milan e #Atangana (€6,5M vs €9M).
L'agente del centrocampista 🔴⚫ non abbassa le sue richieste, forte delle offerte da c.a €10M ricevute da #Tottenham e #PSG. Anche il #ManUTD si muove con decisione per l'🇨🇮. 🐓⚽ #SerieA pic.twitter.com/xwOClcy3Ng
— Rudy Galetti (@RudyGaletti) December 16, 2021
According to Italian journalist Rudy Galetti, the Red Devils are ‘moving decisively’ for the player, although they do appear one step behind Tottenham and Paris Saint-Germain right now.
That’s because both Spurs and the Ligue 1 side have put forward a contract offer worth €10m/year for the midfielder, which, with claims Manchester United have offered Pogba €20m/year, shouldn’t be a problem for Ralf Rangnick’s side to match.
We’ll have to wait and see, but it appears like the Old Trafford side are already planning life without the Frenchman.
Or, if he does magically renew, ready to give him some quality to work alongside going forward.