Manchester United are close to securing their first signing of the transfer window in Joshua Zirkzee but outgoings are equally as important, if not more.
They’ve already managed to offload Donny van de Beek to Girona and in doing so, started correcting one of Glazers’ biggest faults while in charge.
Now, with pre-season looming, they have to sort out the future of some others as well on an urgent basis, like Jadon Sancho and Mason Greenwood.
It appears that the latter’s case is getting close to completion…
Formal bid launched for Mason Greenwood
Mason Greenwood was always expected to garner interest this summer after an encouraging loan spell at Getafe and that has precisely been the case.
He has been linked to many teams but so far, Lazio had been the only one to put in a bid, one that was swiftly rejected by United.
Lazio have now been joined in their efforts by Olympique Marseille, who have followed up their strong interest by launching a formal bid for the players, as per Fabrizio Romano.
He states that Greenwood is Marseille’s “main target” and the agreement is getting closer with talks underway between the two clubs.
United are open to a loan deal with an obligation to buy next season, which they can take up by activating the one-year option in Greenwood’s contract.
A sell-on clause is also expected in the deal which would see United benefit further if Greenwood is sold for a big fee down the line.
It is a good scenario for United who would have lost all hope of getting a return on Greenwood after last season’s failed effort at reintegrating him into the squad. They had to hurriedly arrange a loan destination for him but the success of that loan has put them in a strong position.
Necessary closing of the chapter
Sir Jim Ratcliffe had previously kept the door open for Greenwood’s potential return to the team but it was always likely to be more of a negotiating stance than an actual one. Giving away the fact that they want to sell the player would open United to lowball offers from interested parties.
Instead, a bidding war has commenced for his services and it wouldn’t be a surprise if United now challenge Lazio to match Marseille’s term or another team enters the fray.
Greenwood’s sale would count as pure profit on the books due to his status as an academy product, although that could be in jeopardy if he leaves on an initial loan deal.
Still, United have other assets they need to sell to beef up their balance books anyway, so they can afford to delay the Greenwood fee by a year, when hopefully their finances look much healthier.
Ultimately, it is a necessary closing of the chapter that would have otherwise loomed over United’s pre-season preparations.
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