Napoli close to "full agreement" on £25m transfer after Man Utd talks fail amid £70m demand
Manchester United are running out of time to finalise any incomings and outgoings with deadline day approaching
Manchester United have just a few more days to finalise any more transfer business in and out of Old Trafford as Monday’s 1pm deadline edges closer. As reported by Manchester World at the start of the month, the Red Devils were to be restricted to loans and free agents during the winter window unless funds were generated from player sales.
Antony has headed on loan to Real Betis while Casemiro has been linked with a move away as United are keen to get his salary off their wage bill. Two of the players talked about most when it comes to a possible departure is Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho. Rashford announced his desire to seek a new challenge in December after being dropped for the Manchester derby.
Meanwhile, United are not openly looking to sell Garnacho but with concerns over profit and sustainability would not rule out an exit for the right price. That price is said to stand at £70m.
Napoli agree transfer after moving on from Garnacho
Serie A side Napoli have been one of the leading contenders to sign Garnacho and reportedly offered £38m to sign the winger, but that is just over half of what United are reported to want. Premier League rivals Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur have also been linked but neither club has come to the table with an offer. United are said to be unwilling to entertain late bids and will only consider doing business if a club comes to the table before Friday night.
Napoli appear to have moved on after reports they were close to signing Pietro Comuzzo on loan from Fiorentina. The potential move is worth a combined £25m after a loan fee, obligation to buy and add-ons are including. Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano reported on X: “Napoli are close to reaching full agreement for Pietro Comuzzo: €5m loan fee, €20m mandatory buy clause, €5m add-ons as new bid to Fiorentina. After Adeyemi deal off, Napoli also informed Garnacho’s camp that if Man United reduce requests, they’d be open to try again.”
What has Amorim said about Garnacho?
Garnacho looked to be out of favour when Ruben Amorim first came to Old Trafford but he has been given his chance in recent weeks and has done enough to impress his manager as he keeps getting selected.
“I’m happy to have Garnacho here,” he told TNT Sports ahead of United’s Europa League outing on Thursday. “He’s improving a lot. He’s a young talented guy. You want to work with these guys with talent. That’s what drives the coaches to improve the team; to have these kinds of players that you know they are going to improve a lot. In football, especially when we are in these situations, sometimes it’s hard, but I don’t want to focus on that. I’m really happy to have Garnacho.”
On possible additions, he added: "What I can say is that the club wants to improve the team. That is the most important thing. Everybody is doing things, everything, to improve the team. If we can do it or not; sometimes it doesn't depend just from the club or even the player. We are focused on improving the team, but also we are really focused on not doing mistakes that are going to be hard in the future to go back."