Manchester United have cleared two of the last remaining hurdles on the course towards signing Joshua Zirkzee from Bologna, but are still deliberating a decisive aspect of the deal, David Ornstein has revealed.
Zirkzee is one of the main players Man Utd are focusing on as they aim to kickstart their new era this summer. After releasing Anthony Martial, they have identified the Bologna striker as the ideal player to compete with Rasmus Hojlund in the centre-forward department…….CONTINUE READING
Bologna qualified for next season’s Champions League and Zirkzee was a key part of how they took the rest of Serie A by surprise. He scored 11 league goals, the second best return of his career so far.
The trouble for Bologna is that their success has led to big clubs poaching their talents. Head coach Thiago Motta has gone to Juventus, star defender Riccardo Calafiori is in line to join Arsenal, and Zirkzee is heavily linked with Man Utd.
And on that front, there have been some major developments on Sunday, with several respected reporters revealing the progress Man Utd have made.
Writing for The Athletic, Ornstein has revealed that Man Utd are ‘working to finalise’ a deal for Zirkzee, which is ‘now close’.
Crucially, Man Utd have now secured an agreement on personal terms with Zirkzee and for agent Kia Joorabchian’s commission.
With everything sorted on the player’s side, Man Utd now need to strike a deal with Bologna. They can do so by activating his €40m release clause, but even though it’s been reported that they’ve told Bologna of their intentions, they might not.
Man Utd tipped to negotiate Zirkzee price
According to Ornstein, talks will continue as to whether Man Utd agree a different price with Bologna or if they hit the £33.9m clause to get their man.
Sky Sports Germany expert Florian Plettenberg – who has covered this story intently after Zirkzee’s previous spell with Bayern Munich – has since clarified that Man Utd are indeed willing to pay the €40m fee needed to bypass negotiations.
Plettenberg and Fabrizio Romano have both confirmed that Zirkzee has recently spoken with Man Utd manager Erik ten Hag, who has already welcomed a few Dutch players – or at least ones with an Eredivisie past – to Old Trafford over the past couple of years.
Zirkzee could become the latest to link up with Ten Hag in Manchester, and he could be closely followed by Matthijs de Ligt. The Bayern defender has also been in talks with Ten Hag about arriving in the Premier League and has given his approval to the potential reunion with his former Ajax coach.
On the other hand, Zirkzee has not yet had the chance to play under Ten Hag, but that could soon be about to change.
