Man Utd reportedly tried to convince Idrissa Gueye to snub a move to Paris Saint-Germain and join them instead, but have failed in their attempt to do so.
The midfield is a problem area for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer heading into the new campaign, as he saw Ander Herrera leave on a free transfer earlier this summer and eventually join PSG.
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United are yet to replace the Spaniard, and while they could look to the likes of Scott McTominay and Andreas Pereira to play bigger roles, Solskjaer will surely want reinforcements to arrive before the August 8 transfer deadline to boost their hopes of competing on multiple fronts this year.
According to L’Equipe, as translated by the Metro, it has been reported that they expressed late interest in Gueye, but they failed to convince him to move to Old Trafford and he is now expected to complete a €32m plus bonuses switch from Everton to the Ligue 1 champions next week.
It’s added that there were two key reasons behind that decision, as the opportunity to play in the Champions League and to work with coach Thomas Tuchel ensured that he chose the French giants.
United will have to now consider alternative options it seems, but it’s clear from their reported interest in Gueye that they’re looking to add energy and some steeliness in midfield to perhaps allow the likes of Paul Pogba to take on less of a defensive burden and influence play in the final third.
It’s a smart strategy from Solskjaer, but with Gueye seemingly now bound for France, it remains to be seen who is Plan B to provide the same impact moving forward with time running out as the deadline is fast approaching.
