Manchester United are considering Benfica striker Goncalo Ramos as one of a number of potential transfer targets to come in up front during the summer.
The 21-year-old has been in superb form in recent times and looks like he’ll surely be on his way to a big club before too long, though it also seems that a new contract at Benfica can’t be entirely ruled out either, according to Ben Jacobs in his exclusive CaughtOffside column.
Ramos could be a decent option for Man Utd, though Jacobs has suggested that their current obsession is with Napoli front-man Victor Osimhen, while they’re also waiting to see what happens with Harry Kane at Tottenham.
Along with someone like Roma’s Tammy Abraham, it seems Ramos is not right at the top of United’s list, but one imagines a few fans would be more than happy with the arrival of the talented young Portugal international.
Ramos has scored 24 goals in 36 games in all competitions so far this season, and will surely only improve with age and experience, as well as with better players around him.
“Goncalo Ramos has been on a number of top club’ radars for quite some time – long before his World Cup hat-trick for Portugal in the 6-1 win over Switzerland. The Benfica forward is in excellent club form with 24 goals and 10 assists in all competitions,” Jacobs said.
“Ramos, who has a release clause of €120m, almost joined PSG last summer. But Benfica held out for close to €45m, which was seen as too high at the time.
“At the same time, several Premier League clubs looked with differing degrees of intent, including Manchester United, Newcastle, Leeds, Wolves, Southampton and Nottingham Forest.
“It’s no surprise therefore to see Ramos linked against with a move to Old Trafford. But Ramos himself has actually been expecting a new deal at Benfica. Rui Costa is yet to provide one. The 21-year-old would gladly stay another season for the right terms.
“Manchester United are looking at several strikers. It’s more a long list than a short list. As a result Ramos, a bit like Tammy Abraham, is there but not necessarily right at the top.
“Manchester United are still obsessed with Victor Osimhen, who almost joined them before moving to Napoli, but decided against it due to a lack of game time.
“Harry Kane has also been discussed internally, but it all still depends on the England striker. Spurs want him to extend and that had been Kane’s primary intention before Antonio Conte’s dramatic exit.”