Premier League giants Manchester United watched Serie A trio Joshua Zirkzee, Gianluca Scalvini and Teun Koopmeiners during the recent Serie A meeting between Atalanta and Bologna.
With their first summer under Ineos control now only a few months away, you can expect Manchester United to attack the market in a far more co-ordinated, organised manner than we were used to when Joel Glazer was calling the shots with all the enthusiasm of a hungover sloth on Sunday morning.
The Red Devils are pursuing additions all across the pitch, at centre-half, midfield and in attack, and will not leave things until the last minute this time to get deals done.
As Atalanta hosted Bologna in Bergamo on March 3rd, a player capable of filling each of those aforementioned positions took to the field, with FC Inter News reporting that Man United had a scout present in the stands.
Manchester United eyeing up Serie A trio
United are keeping tabs on Joshua Zirkzee, the silky, £42 million-rated striker who scored from the spot during Bologna’s 2-1 win. Atalanta duo Teun Koopmeiners and Gianluca Scalvini – a left-footed, box-to-box midfielder and a stylish, ball-playing centre-half respectively – also have admirers at Old Trafford.
FC Inter News believe that, while Zirkzee is an option to strengthen Erik ten Hag’s frontline, it is the Atalanta pair who are higher up on United’s wishlist. Scalvini, reportedly valued at around £43 million, is one of a number of talented young defenders under consideration with the futures of Raphael Varane, Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof and Jonny Evans uncertain.
Koopmeiners, meanwhile, will supposedly cost closer to £60 million. Links with the former AZ Alkmaar captain may raise eyebrows among the United support – Ten Hag’s pursuit of players he knows well from the Eredivisie has had decidedly mixed results – but Koopmeiners’ stellar displays at Atalanta means he should not be written off just because Antony and co have struggled in England.
The left-footed Koopmeiners has blossomed from a deep-lying playmaker into one of the most complete and well-rounded midfielders on the market. A brace against Juventus last time out means Koopmeiners now has 12 goals in all competitions this season. He hit ten in 2023/24, including two hat-tricks and one of the finest trebles you will ever see against Monza.
‘He reminds me a lot of Berbatov’
Interestingly, Man United have also been linked with Atalanta enforcer Ederson and Bologna coach Thiago Motta. Neither were mentioned in FC Inter News’ report, however, with the publication instead focusing on the Nerazzuri’s pursuit of Zirkzee.
“Zirkzee? He will be a transfer man in the summer,” Roberto Acquafresca, who spent six years at Bologna until 2017, tells Tuttomercatoweb. “And, if I have to compare him to someone, he reminds me a lot of (United icon Dimitar) Berbatov.
“Because he has great technique and vision of the game and only scores beautiful goals.”
German chief Florian Plettenberg reported in February that Zirkzee had slipped behind Mathys Tel in Man United’s pecking order. Tel has since signed a new deal with Bayern Munich.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
