Manchester United have registered interest in the services of RB Leipzig youngster Eric Martel, currently on loan at Austria Vienna.
According to a report from The Sun, Manchester United interim manager Ralf Rangnick is prepared to raid his former club RB Leipzig in order to further strengthen his squad, either in January or in the summer transfer window.
While Manchester United have been linked with moves for established stars like Amadou Haidara, Nordi Mukiele and Christopher Nknunku, it appears Rangnick is also targeting a few of the young guns in the academy, with Eric Martel emerging as a potential candidate. The 19-year-old midfield sensation is one of four German talents United are monitoring, with the list also including Luca Netz, Armel Bella-Kotchap and Florian Wirtz.
A member of the highly-successful RB Leipzig youth academy, Martel currently plies his trade for Austria Vienna. He had joined the Austrian Bundesliga outfit at the start of the year on an 18-month loan deal.
During his ongoing one-year spell in Vienna so far, Martel has notched up almost 50 competitive appearances for the club. A defensive midfielder by trade, the youngster has made a solid impression with his composure and versatility in the middle of the park. Indeed, the 19-year-old is a very handy midfielder who can even operate at centre-back if required.
Standing at 1.87m, Martel’s imposing figure makes him an intimidating presence in the middle of the park. His performances in the Austrian Bundesliga back up his skills, too, with the player now finding himself on the crosshairs of Manchester United.
Ralf Rangnick has no prior experience of working with Martel. But the Manchester United interim boss was the club’s sporting director when the 19-year-old joined the Leipzig academy back in 2017.
Manchester United’s interest in the RB Leipzig prodigy is unsurprising as the club is looking for new options in midfield amid the uncertainties surrounding the future of Nemanja Matic. The Serb is already in the final phase of his career and was recently linked with a January move to Newcastle United.
The addition of Eric Martel, therefore, could help Rangnick find himself a long-term successor for the veteran. However, Manchester United may have to be patient in the pursuit of the teenage sensation as Leipzig will be in no mood of offloading one of their most promising young talents. The midfielder is also unlikely to leave Die Roten Bullen until his loan contract with Austria Vienna expires at the end of the season.
The Red Devils, though, have no shortage of alternatives, having been linked with a move for Boubacar Kamara among many other talented defensive midfielders across Europe.
