Man Utd are reportedly on the verge of signing Inter winger Ivan Perisic, with the Croatian international previously linked with a £45m switch.
Jose Mourinho has been busy plotting how to strengthen his squad this summer and has already added Victor Lindelof and Romelu Lukaku to the group.
Those are two key signings in two areas of the Man Utd team that needed bolstering, now the process continues to improve the quality and depth of the squad overall.
According to The Independent chief football writer Miguel Delaney, as seen in the tweets below, Perisic is now ‘very close’ to joining the Red Devils, while he’s also claimed that Anthony Martial will not be included as part of the deal.
Perisic now very close. Will be good signing. Crosses the ball almost five times more than United's current wingers – needed with Lukaku!
— Miguel Delaney (@MiguelDelaney) July 16, 2017
No
— Miguel Delaney (@MiguelDelaney) July 16, 2017
As reported by The Guardian last week, United were aiming to try and sign the 28-year-old before Inter flew out to China for their pre-season tour. The former Wolfsburg star had been valued at around £49m, while it was hoped that United could lower those demands to around £45m.
It remains to be seen what the eventual agreement between the two clubs comes to, but ultimately all the indications suggest that Perisic will be a United player sooner rather than later.
The addition of Perisic would be a sensible move from Mourinho as the Inter ace adds pace, movement, creativity, goals and great work ethic, while his versatility could see him deployed in different positions to offer Man Utd something different from their current options.
His arrival could yet have a negative impact on Martial’s playing time, but for now, as per Delaney at least, the Frenchman will remain at Old Trafford and continue to try and prove his worth to Mourinho.