Manchester United have reportedly made a fresh £40 million offer to sign Victor Lindelof from Benfica in the summer transfer window.
According to a report in the Daily Mirror, Manchester United have held fresh talks with Benfica to complete the transfer of Victor Lindelof in a £40 million deal. The Portuguese club, however, are insistent on the Red Devils forking out the £50 million release clause in the defender’s contract in full.
Lindelof has emerged as one of the most exciting young prospects in Europe in what continues to be a breakthrough season for him. Having joined Benfica as an 18-year-old, the Swedish international hasn’t taken long to become one of the most integral members in the first-team setup.
The 22-year-old has become a mainstay in defence for the Portuguese giants, making 43 appearances across all competitions this season. And he opened his account for the season last week as his stunning long-range free kick earned Benfica a hard-fought 1-1 draw against Sporting Lisbon.
The goal and result also kept Benfica three points clear of Porto at the top of the Liga NOS table, and it is influential performances like these that have seen Lindelof attract attention from several clubs across Europe.
The likes of Chelsea, Barcelona and AS Roma have all shown interest in the Swede, but Manchester United have been the club that has been linked most heavily with him. In fact, the Premier League giants were believed to be close to securing a deal for him in January before the move failed to materialise.
According to the latest report by the Mirror, though, it looks like Manchester United are back in the market for Lindelof, and have held fresh talks to seal a £40 million deal for the centre-back in the summer.
The need to sign a centre-back has accentuated for Jose Mourinho, whose squad has been stretched to its very limits in recent weeks. Defence has been the worst hit area, with Marcos Rojo out for the remainder of the season and beyond. Chris Smalling and Phil Jones are also sidelined with their respective injuries.
While the English duo are expected to be back before the end of the season, Mourinho has time and again had to shuffle his central defensive pairing all through the campaign, something that the Portuguese is known to be strictly against and as a result, he has shifted his attention to his homeland to recruit a centre-back.
That defender is Lindelof, but there is a stumbling block in their pursuit of the Swedish international. Benfica are adamant that they will not let the 22-year-old go for anything less than £50 million – the buy-out clause in his contract.
Manchester United, though, are confident that they can reach a compromise closer to their offer for Lindelof, and it remains to be seen if they can secure a move for the highly-rated defender this time around.
