Man Utd have reportedly set their stall at around €80m in terms of a possible bid to try and prise Saul Niguez away from Atletico Madrid.
The 25-year-old has long established himself as a key figure in Diego Simeone’s side, while he has made 19 appearances for Spain at senior level too.
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He has continued to impress this season having featured 37 times across all competitions, and there is little doubt that he is among the top midfielders in Europe currently given what he can offer both defensively and going forward.
With that in mind, it’s no real surprise then that speculation has suggested that others could be interested, with AS reporting that Man Utd could be willing to offer around €80m to sign him.
That’s significantly short of his €150m release clause, but the report notes that United don’t intend on paying that figure as it’s too high, while it’s noted that their interest possibly stems from the concern that they may have in having to replace Paul Pogba this summer.
The Frenchman has been limited to just eight appearances this season so far due to injury, but despite his absence, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side remain in contention for a top-four finish in the Premier League and are still in the hunt for the FA Cup and Europa League.
Adding Bruno Fernandes in January was a crucial move, and so perhaps losing Pogba wouldn’t be as disastrous as some might think, especially if they moved to fill the void with a swoop for Saul. As noted by the Metro, speculation remains rife over his future in Manchester.
Time will tell if that touted offer will be enough to convince Atleti to green light an exit though, as while it is still a significant amount of money, the Spanish international is one of the most important figures in the current side and so Simeone ideally won’t want to lose him at all, but certainly not for anything less than the maximum amount they can squeeze out of an interested party with that clause in mind.