Manchester United could be one to watch in the race for the transfer of Nice midfielder Khephren Thuram despite more long-standing links with the likes of Liverpool and Newcastle, according to Jonathan Johnson.
The French football expert, speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside for his Daily Briefing column, has discussed the latest on Thuram’s future, with not much changing since he was also linked with a move away during the summer.
At that time it looked like Liverpool might be the strongest suitors for the young Frenchman, though Johnson has suggested that Man Utd could look at him once Sir Jim Ratcliffe comes in at Old Trafford.
Ratcliffe is currently also the owner of Nice, so it may be that he’ll look to bring in key figures who’ve brought success to the Ligue 1 side, and that could include players like Thuram.
The 22-year-old looks a fine prospect and it could be that he’d be an ideal long-term successor to someone like Casemiro, who has gone off the boil this season, while loan signing Sofyan Amrabat has not been too convincing either.
Liverpool may also no longer be in the race for Thuram after signing four midfielders during the summer, with significant money going into bringing in Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch, Wataru Endo and Dominik Szoboszlai.
Discussing the Thuram situation, Johnson also made it clear he felt a move was more likely for the summer as Nice won’t want to sell in the middle of what is proving to be quite a promising campaign for them.
“Khephren Thuram is again attracting transfer rumours and speculation ahead of January, with Liverpool and Newcastle being mentioned as suitors, but I can’t see anything happening in the middle of the season – certainly not while Nice are as competitive as they are,” Johnson said.
“It’s been a surprisingly strong campaign from Nice so far, they’re not in mid-table as they have been in some years gone by, so the plan for now is to try to keep hold of Thuram, as well as Jean-Clair Todibo, who has been linked with Manchester United and others.
“For now, I see Thuram and Todibo seeing out the season and seeing how far this team can go under Francesco Farioli. It looks like they might be starting to drop off a bit after a strong start, with PSG opening up a bit more of a lead at the top of Ligue 1.
“One thing that is well worth keeping an eye on, however, is the situation at Manchester United with Sir Jim Ratcliffe coming in, and what that might mean for Nice’s short-to-long-term future. It remains to be seen if Ratcliffe has a path to majority ownership at United, so it’s possibly going to become a significant conflict of interest, which might mean Nice coming into new ownership.
“Once Sir Jim and his people are through the door at Old Trafford, even if it’s just a minority stake initially, they probably will want to bring through the best sporting elements from Nice, and that may well include players like Thuram. That’s worth considering as well as the well-established interest in Todibo.”