Manchester United are in negotiations to sign Kieran Trippier from Atletico Madrid, according to a very reliable source, The Athletic.
United reportedly want the right-back as cover for Aaron Wan-Bissaka, but the deal seems a curious one for several reasons, including the mooted fee.
Nonetheless, according to The Athletic’s Laurie Whitwell, Director of football negotiations Matt Judge is ‘in dialogue over’ the England man.
‘Talks with Atletico Madrid have commenced, with Solskjaer viewing the 30-year-old England international as a ready-made elite option to challenge Aaron Wan-Bissaka at right-back.
‘It is known that Trippier would like to return to the north west … and sources report he has been looking at houses in the Manchester area.’
Trippier is valued at £17 million by Transfermarkt.com, but according to Whitwell, ‘a £10 million fee has been discussed within the industry, although this seems low for a player of his pedigree.’
That is putting it mildly: with two years left on his contract, and the newly-crowned Spanish champions flying high at the moment, there seems little in this deal for his current side.
‘Some believe Atletico could be open to a sale to smooth cash flow,’ says Whitwell, but they would nonetheless surely push for something closer to his market value.
Another curious aspect is the player’s motivation.
It is natural that he might want to return to the North West, and the salary on offer at United would no doubt be considerably more than the repored £82,000 per week he earns at the Wanda Metropolitano.
But why would the regular starting right back of the Spanish champions want to be a backup player at the age of 30?
Whitwell also claims that ‘United got as far as advanced talks over Trippier last winter before the FA’s 10-week ban for betting offences torpedoed a January switch.’
From the United end, if a deal can be done at that sort of price it would represent an excellent piece of business.
United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer seems particularly drawn to English players, having acquired Harry Maguire and Wan-Bissaka already and being reportedly close to a deal for Jadon Sancho.