Manchester United could be set to land another midfield target after comments from Roma manager Gian Piero Gasperini hinted a deal can be done for Manu Kone.
It has been a rollercoaster summer already for the Red Devils in the transfer market as they have missed out on a number of targets but also landed some surprise signings.
While the likes of Mateus Fernandes, Elliot Anderson and Sandro Tonali have chosen other clubs, Manchester United have signed Andrey Santos from Chelsea for £48 million and are bringing in Youri Tielemans from Aston Villa.
The expected arrival of Ederson from Atalanta has stalled after an issue emerged on the Brazil international’s medical.
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The Red Devils will not be signing him at the agreed £35m price so the move is in limbo at the moment, but not completely off the table.
Manchester United could now turn their attention to another option in midfield, having already been linked with a move for Roma and France star Kone.
Roma do not want to lose the 25-year-old, but Gasperini suggests they will have to bring in money to comply with Financial Fair Play rules.
Gasperini told Rai Radio Uno, via Sport Witness: ‘Unlike Malen, he was sidelined for a while due to injury and arrived at the World Cup in better shape. Last year he hadn’t played for France yet, and he managed to earn a starting spot, which shows his true worth.
‘His future? I think these Financial Fair Play conditions are never so precise and defined; they vary from team to team. Roma also need to balance the books, which have been burdensome in recent years.
‘I hoped that returning to the Champions League would be enough, but it’s clear that financial statements are crucial for clubs. I believe there will be more clarity in the coming weeks.’
Kone has featured regularly during France’s World Cup run, starting in the wins over Iraq, Norway, Paraguay and Morocco.
His valuation is only rising the deeper France go at the tournament and Corriere dello Sport report Roma will not sell him for less than €60 million (£51.1m).
Atletico Madrid are also very keen on the Frenchman and have already seen a bid of €40m (£34.1m) turned down.
The report from Italy states that Liverpool are also interested and are ‘closely monitoring’ Kone’s situation.
Arsenal were also touted with an interest in him earlier this summer, when Kone dismissed talk of his future, with the World Cup dominating his thoughts.
‘Honestly, right now I’m only thinking about the World Cup. It’s my first major international competition, a tournament I’ve always dreamed of playing in,’ he told Gazzetta dello Sport in June.
‘I want to remain exclusively focused on this. We’ll talk about the future after the World Cup and see what happens.’