Sir Alex Ferguson may have to break Manchester United’s club record transfer fee to sign Brazilian starlet Lucas Moura.
The 19-year-old attacking midfielder is also a target for Inter Milan – and his club Sao Paulo are holding out for mega- money before allowing him to head for Europe.
United are understood to have made as many as three bids for the player, which have all been rejected.
The latest, believed to be close to £30m, has also been rebuffed due to the teenager’s complicated contract.
Moura is currently entitled to 20 per cent of any fee. That will rise to 30 per cent by August 1 – meaning any deal will have to be concluded this month if Sao Paulo are to make a maximum profit.
That could also work in United’s favour, who made an initial bid six weeks ago.
Ferguson is reluctant to spend over the odds on a player who will represent a major gamble, having never played outside of Brazil.
The United manager will........
The 19-year-old attacking midfielder is also a target for Inter Milan – and his club Sao Paulo are holding out for mega- money before allowing him to head for Europe.
United are understood to have made as many as three bids for the player, which have all been rejected.
The latest, believed to be close to £30m, has also been rebuffed due to the teenager’s complicated contract.
Moura is currently entitled to 20 per cent of any fee. That will rise to 30 per cent by August 1 – meaning any deal will have to be concluded this month if Sao Paulo are to make a maximum profit.
That could also work in United’s favour, who made an initial bid six weeks ago.
Ferguson is reluctant to spend over the odds on a player who will represent a major gamble, having never played outside of Brazil.
The United manager will........
almost certainly not want to exceed the £30.75m he paid for Dimitar Berbatov in 2008, which remains a club record.
But should August 1 approach without Sao Paulo finding a buyer, then the offer from Old Trafford will look increasingly attractive.
A bid of £30m already looks excessive for United, who have spent the last four summers scouring the globe for bargains in the form of Javier Hernandez and Chris Smalling.
While City and Chelsea, in particular, have been able to splash the cash on major signings like Sergio Aguero, Yaya Toure, Fernando Torres and Eden Hazard, Ferguson’s spending has been considerably more modest.
Still, he has displayed a willingness to spend big on emerging talent, signing 20-year-old David de Gea for £18.9m last year.
Nani and Anderson cost in the region of a combined £50m when they were signed as relative unknowns in 2007.
United chief executive David Gill insists there is money to spend in the transfer market and that Ferguson can still compete for the game’s top players.
But so far this summer he has spent £17m on Shinji Kagawa and £4m on Crewe starlet Nick Powell.
Interest in Luka Modric remains but Tottenham’s £35m valuation looks prohibitive, while Real Madrid lead the chase for the Croatian.
Should Ferguson have to concede defeat in his pursuit of Moura, he may have to turn to other targets he has monitored over the past 12 months.
They include Porto winger James Rodriguez, who has indicated a willingness to stay in Portugal, and Ajax playmaker Christian Eriksen, who is understood to be keen on a move to United.
But Moura appears to be Ferguson’s preferred option, having had the player watched intensively in recent months.
He has already confirmed that he hopes to make two more signings before the start of the season next month as he bids to wrest the Premier League title back from City.
Arsenal striker Robin van Persie is one of the names high on his list – even if he does face fierce competition from Roberto Mancini.
Having already missed out on Hazard this summer, it would be a major blow to come up empty-handed in moves for both Van Persie and Moura – and would lead to further fears among supporters that United can no longer compete with their major rivals in the transfer market.
Who should United go for? Have your say.
But should August 1 approach without Sao Paulo finding a buyer, then the offer from Old Trafford will look increasingly attractive.
A bid of £30m already looks excessive for United, who have spent the last four summers scouring the globe for bargains in the form of Javier Hernandez and Chris Smalling.
While City and Chelsea, in particular, have been able to splash the cash on major signings like Sergio Aguero, Yaya Toure, Fernando Torres and Eden Hazard, Ferguson’s spending has been considerably more modest.
Still, he has displayed a willingness to spend big on emerging talent, signing 20-year-old David de Gea for £18.9m last year.
Nani and Anderson cost in the region of a combined £50m when they were signed as relative unknowns in 2007.
United chief executive David Gill insists there is money to spend in the transfer market and that Ferguson can still compete for the game’s top players.
But so far this summer he has spent £17m on Shinji Kagawa and £4m on Crewe starlet Nick Powell.
Interest in Luka Modric remains but Tottenham’s £35m valuation looks prohibitive, while Real Madrid lead the chase for the Croatian.
Should Ferguson have to concede defeat in his pursuit of Moura, he may have to turn to other targets he has monitored over the past 12 months.
They include Porto winger James Rodriguez, who has indicated a willingness to stay in Portugal, and Ajax playmaker Christian Eriksen, who is understood to be keen on a move to United.
But Moura appears to be Ferguson’s preferred option, having had the player watched intensively in recent months.
He has already confirmed that he hopes to make two more signings before the start of the season next month as he bids to wrest the Premier League title back from City.
Arsenal striker Robin van Persie is one of the names high on his list – even if he does face fierce competition from Roberto Mancini.
Having already missed out on Hazard this summer, it would be a major blow to come up empty-handed in moves for both Van Persie and Moura – and would lead to further fears among supporters that United can no longer compete with their major rivals in the transfer market.
Who should United go for? Have your say.
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