Rennes have reportedly lined up Manchester United defender Victor Lindelof as a potential replacement for Arthur Theate should he leave the club this summer.
According to Fabrice Hawkins, Rennes are interested in signing Manchester United defender Victor Lindelof if Arthur Theate leaves the French club before the summer transfer deadline.
Theate has been linked with Liverpool and a host of other Premier League clubs. If he were to depart the French side, then Lindelof is high on Rennes’ wishlist. A transfer remains complex as the 29-year-old is not exploring a move away from Old Trafford after he played a pivotal role in the final months of last campaign as United secured a top-four finish in the Premier League.
Erik ten Hag is seemingly keen to shift a few big earners off the payroll as he continues his rebuild. He has already been backed by the big-money additions of Mason Mount, Andre Onana, and Rasmus Hojlund, but more departures are inevitable if they are to do more business between now and the end of the window.
Man Utd had been keen to add another defensive option to their ranks, with names such as OGC Nice’s highly-rated centre-back Jean-Clair Todibo and Bayern Munich’s Benjamin Pavard mooted in the rumour mill, but Harry Maguire’s collapsed move to West Ham and no suitors for outcast Eric Bailly seem to have put the brakes on that idea for the time being.
And it looks highly unlikely that Lindelof would be the one United are willing to sacrifice Victor Lindelof to raise funds despite interest from multiple clubs.
Although Lindelof is once again on the bench, with Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez ahead of the Swede in the pecking order, Erik ten Hag is thought to be a big fan of the Swedish international and has no intention of letting Lindelöf leave this summer.
Ten Hag resorted to Lindelof towards the end of last season following Martinez’s season-ending injury in April, playing the full 90 minutes in each of the Red Devils’ last nine league games as well as the FA Cup semi-final and final matches with Brighton and Manchester City.
And it’s fair to say, he delivered some stellar display with his ball-playing qualities on full display. Overall, he has racked up 232 appearances for the Red Devils since he was signed from Benfica in 2017 for a fee of €35 million. His contract expires next summer, but United have the option to extend it for another year.
With Varane’s poor injury track record, Lindelof is still a key player for the Old Trafford side and is happy at the club, which makes a move away from Old Trafford all the more unlikely.
