Transfer News: Manchester United and Tottenham handed major boost in pursuit of Ryan Sessegnon

Manchester United and Tottenham have reportedly given the green light to step up their pursuit of Fulham left-back Ryan Sessegnon.

According to a report by The Sun, Fulham have started planning for life after Ryan Sessegnon, as they set about signing a new left-back in January. Manchester United and Tottenham have now been handed a major boost in their long-term pursuit of the highly-rated defender.

Sessegnon has long been heralded as the ‘Next Big Thing’ in English football, ever since breaking into the first-team setup at Fulham at the nascent age of 16. The player has since become one of the mainstays for the Cottagers, and has already amassed over 50 appearances for them.

This season, Sessegnon has played every single game for Slavisa Jokanovic’s side, displaying a lot of maturity at the back while also contributing to his team’s cause with four goals and two assists. His advent in English football has unsurprisingly attracted interest from a lot of clubs – prominent ones at that.

While the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City have all been linked with the teenager at some point over the last few months, Manchester United and Tottenham are the suitors that have continued to show the most concrete of interests.

At Tottenham, Mauricio Pochettino has Danny Rose and Ben Davies as his current options for left-back. Rose’s future at the North London club, though, is mired under heavy uncertainty, with the player coincidentally being linked to Manchester United, who have problems of their own on the left side of defence.

Luke Shaw has struggled to nail down a regular spot in the first-team setup at Old Trafford since his move from Southampton in the summer of 2014, due to poor form and injuries. Things have only gone from bad to worse under Jose Mourinho, who has deployed the likes of Daley Blind, Marcos Rojo, Ashley Young and Matteo Darmian as left-back as a result.

With only Young managing to perform consistently, and Shaw likely to be sold either in January or next summer, the need to sign a left-back has accentuated. And now, Manchester United and Tottenham have a spring in their step in pursuit of Sessegnon.

Fulham are putting together a contingency plan to replace Sessegnon, giving the Premier League duo the green light in pursuit of the teenager. The only potential stumbling block could be his asking price, with the player set to cost a staggering £50 million.

It now remains to be seen if either club succeeds in their long-time pursuit of Sessegnon, with Fulham set to make peace with the idea of letting the exciting young left-back leave in January.