Manchester United and Tottenham are battling it out with Fiorentina to sign Freiburg striker Igor Matanovic, according to reports in Italy
Matanovic left Eintracht Frankfurt to join Freiburg in an €8million (£6.9m) deal last summer and the 23-year-old went on to score 15 goals in all competitions across a promising campaign with the Bundesliga club.
The imposing forward – who stands at 6 ft 5 in – will have been desperate to cap off a fine debut season with Freiburg by getting his hands on Europa League trophy, but it wasn’t to be for Julian Schuster’s men, who were swept aside by Aston Villa in the final.
La Gazzetta dello Sport report that Matanovic’s performances over the last 12 months have made him a top target for Serie A outfit Fiorentina in the final week of the transfer window.
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It’s claimed the Croatia international has emerged as a ‘new name’ on Fiorentina’s radar as the club’s hierarchy scour the market for a potential replacement for Moise Kean, who is edging closer to joining Cesc Fabregas’ Como.
The move is said to be an ‘ambitious’ one from Fiorentina’s perspective given Matanovic also finds himself in the sights of Manchester United and Spurs, who are ‘vying to bring him to the Premier League’.
The report adds that securing a deal for Matanovic ahead of Tuesday’s transfer deadline is likely to prove ‘difficult’ but ‘not impossible’.
Outside of signing a back-up goalkeeper inthe shape of Karl Darlow, central midfield remains the only area in which United have strengthened, with Youri Tielemans, Andrey Santos and Carlos Baleba all arriving through the doors at Old Trafford in recent weeks.
Talks are progressing at a pace between United and Fiorentina over a season-long loan deal for Joshua Zirkzee and both parties are confident of reaching a resolution over the coming days.
Rasmus Hojlund’s permanent switch to Napoli back in June means Benjamin Sesko is the only specialist centre-forward in Michael Carrick’s first-team squad this season.
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Tottenham boss Roberto De Zerbi, meanwhile, has the likes of Dominic Solanke, Richarlison and Mohammed Kudus at his disposal as viable options up front.
The north Londoners are also working on a deal for Omar Marmoush, who has previously been used with some success as a central striker by Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.
Matanovic’s current contract with Freiburg is not due to expire until June 2029
The towering attacker made three appearances for Croatia without finding the net at this summer’s World Cup, coming off the bench against England, Ghana and Portugal.
He has kicked off the club season in encouraging fashion, though, providing an assist against Motherwell in the Europa Conference League before completing a brace in Freiburg’s German Cup first-round victory over Dusseldorf.
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