Manchester United are pushing hard to sign Nicolas Pepe, report The Times.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is said to be very keen on signing Pepe, and talks are said to have been held with Lille.
Lille are holding out for £70 million plus to sign the Ivorian winger.
Is it reliable?
The Times’ report comes from Duncan Castles, who earlier this summer prematurely claimed United had agreed a deal for Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
Ultimately he was proved right, although he did claim it was done two weeks in advance.
Put it this way, we wouldn’t rule this one out, although we aren’t convinced yet.
Castles’ source is said to be from Pepe’s agent, rather United. This does make us wonder if United are just being used, amid interest from other clubs.
Pepe has been at the African Cup of Nations, which has delayed all talks over his future.
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Would he be a good signing?
United need to sign a right winger, there should not be any more papering over the cracks.
Jadon Sancho is off the table this summer, and Pepe, 24, is pretty much the next best option.
While signing Pepe could rule out a later deal for Sancho, United have to improve now.
Pepe scored 22 goals last season for Lille and provided 11 assists.
He could be an excellent addition and would immediately raise the bar at United.
Fan reaction
Here is a look at how fans reacted on Twitter to the reports…
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