Manchester United have been named among clubs ‘tracking’ Borussia Monchengladbach and Switzerland midfielder Denis Zakaria ahead of a potential January offer.
Midfield continues to be an area of particular weakness for United, with Wolves star Joao Moutinho firmly underlining that when he remarked after Monday night’s 1-0 defeat that the visitors were able to ‘control everything’ at Old Trafford.
United have already been linked with RB Leipzig starlet Amadou Haidara, but Zakaria has also emerged as a potential target to provide an immediate boost in the second half of the season.
Zakaria has established himself as a top player with Gladbach since 2017 and has been to three major international tournaments with Switzerland.
The 25-year-old has already decided that he will be leaving Gladbach. He is out of contract at the end of the season and would be available as a free agent, having rejected the club’s efforts to secure a new deal. As such, he is already now eligible to negotiate a pre-contract agreement that will take effect in summer, but United have been tipped to consider a move sooner than that.
The Daily Mirror notes that United are keeping an eye on Zakaria, who is rated at an estimated £25m, and could pay a transfer fee this month to ensure they land him ahead of Liverpool, Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Juventus and Borussia Dortmund, who are all rumoured to be interested.
90min has previously revealed Arsenal’s long-term interest in the Swiss player, while Everton and Leicester have also touched base with his representatives recently.
Zakaria’s camp have so far been offering his services around Europe in order to drum up some hype and smoke out potential suitors. As a result of those efforts, he is expected to have a number of offers to consider this month as he weighs up his next move.
A sale this month has the benefit to Gladbach of receiving a transfer fee, instead of watching a valuable asset walk away for nothing in a few months. The Bundesliga side are also set to lose key centre-back Matthias Ginter in a similar vein as he is another not prepared to sign a new contract beyond this season.
For more from Jamie Spencer, follow him on Twitter and Facebook!
Source : 90min