Manchester United are reportedly ready to rekindle their interest in Wesley Fofana but will need to shell out €60-70 million for the Leicester City defender.
According to a report from Fichajes, Manchester United will revisit their interest in Leicester City defender Wesley Fofana once he returns from injury but will have to spend heavily to sign him up.
Fofana signed for Leicester City from AS Saint-Etienne in the summer of last year and quickly became a key member of the first team under Brendan Rodgers. The 20-year-old played a key role in helping the Foxes finish fifth in the Premier League table and win the FA Cup.
However, the France Under-21 international has not played a single game this season as he recovers from a serious injury. Fofana has played 38 times for Leicester to date, assisting a single goal. While he might not have taken the field this term, the defender continues to be held in high regard in England and Europe.
Indeed, the likes of Real Madrid, Chelsea, Newcastle United and Manchester United have been credited with an interest in Fofana. Now, the Red Devils seem ready to step up their pursuit of the Frenchman once he returns from injury.
The report states that interim manager Ralf Rangnick is seeking improvements on his current defensive options given as Victor Lindelof and Harry Maguire have massively underperformed in the ongoing campaign. Raphael Varane impressed in the early parts of the season but has been battling injury issues while Phil Jones is expected to leave in the near future.
The German tactician has stressed the importance of having greater control in matches and believes that a defender who can read the game well and has better ball-playing abilities could make a difference. It has now led the 20-time English champions to focus on signing Fofana once he has recovered from his injury.
However, Leicester will not give up their defensive star easily. The 20-year-old’s contract with the Foxes runs till 2025, and they have shown previously, as in the case of Maguire, that they will extract the maximum price for their assets. And, the report states that, as things stand, Fofana could end up costing Manchester United somewhere in the range of €60-70 million.
The Red Devils, though, are hoping to drive down the price, citing his recent injury. So, it remains to be seen if there is any progress made on this front in the upcoming transfer windows or whether Manchester United look at other options, with Chelsea’s Andreas Christensen also being linked recently.
