Leicester City and England centre-half Harry Maguire could be on the move in the summer transfer window, with Arsenal and Manchester United interested.
As per a report from The Sun, Arsenal have entered the race to sign Leicester City star Harry Maguire in the summer transfer window. The England international has been a transfer target for arch-rivals Manchester United.
26-year-old Maguire made an impression during his spell with Hull City in the 2016-17 campaign, post which Leicester City snapped him in the subsequent summer, from which point he has just gone from strength to strength. Having had a brilliant 2017-18 term with the Foxes, Maguire was an integral part of the England National Team that made it to the 2018 FIFA World Cup semi-final.
Maguire’s exploits with Leicester and England attracted serious interest from Manchester United last summer, who were keen to secure defensive reinforcements. However, no move materialized at the time. After what has been a disastrous 2018-19 campaign, the Red Devils are once again left seeking new additions to their backline, with their current options not performing well enough.
Apart from Victor Lindelof and Chris Smalling to an extent, the rest of the Manchester United defenders have been disappointing. Phil Jones has been poor again, while Eric Bailly hasn’t been able to establish himself in the first-team picture. With Marcos Rojo reportedly on his way out, a new centre-back will be high on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s shopping list, with Maguire being a viable target.
However, they are not alone in the pursuit of Maguire as arch-rivals Arsenal have also expressed an interest in signing the talented 26-year-old. The Gunners’ first season under Unai Emery has once again been blighted by the same defensive problems that have plagued the North Londoners for quite some time now.
Shkodran Mustafi has had an error-prone season once again, while captain Laurent Koscielny has had his fair share of injury issues. Summer signing Sokratis Papastathopoulos has been the only constant in defence, but he too has had a few lapses and with Nacho Monreal’s contract set to expire, a new defender should be a top priority for Arsenal.
Maguire’s strength and physicality, coupled with his ball-playing abilities make him an attractive proposition for both Manchester United and Arsenal. Signing him would cost somewhere around the £60 million mark, which could prove to be a problem for Arsenal, who are believed to be operating on a tight budget in the upcoming window, handing an advantage to Manchester United.
Maguire is contracted with Leicester till the summer of 2023, having penned a new five-year contract in September last year. However, there is a good chance that he could be playing his last game for the Foxes when they take on Chelsea this weekend on the final matchday of the 2018-19 Premier League. It remains to be seen if either of Arsenal or Manchester United are able to sign him in the summer.
