Are Man United set to miss out on the next Ronaldo to Valencia?
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Manchester United’s hopes of landing Goncalo Guedes look to have taken a blow this week, with Valencia reportedly set to table a £22.5m move for the Benfica wonderkid.
The Red Devils, along with Barcelona and Real Madrid, have been tracking the 19-year-old winger since he broke into the Benfica first team two seasons ago.
And a string of impressive performances last term has subsequently raised the profile of the talented teen even higher.
Touted as the next Cristiano Ronaldo, Guedes netted seven goals and supplied 10 assists in all competitions last term, earning himself two caps for Portugal.
Boss Rui Vitoria was careful not to overuse his star talent, but this year the Benavente-native has become a core member of the first-team, featuring in all eight Primeira Liga games so far.
United have enjoyed success with Portuguese talents before in Ronaldo and Nani, and given Guedes’ agent is Jorge Mendes – the man who engineered the Ronaldo move in 2003 – a deal seemed on the cards.
But it’s Valencia who look set to make the first move.
Spanish outlet El Mundo Deportivo claim Benfica are unlikely to sell for anything under £27m, which could make things interesting should the La Liga outfit stump up only £22.5m.
That could offer some hope for United, who are no strangers to spending big on teenage talent.
In addition to the Ronaldo deal, Anthony Martial arrived from Monaco in 2015 for £36m, while Anderson arrived in 2007 for £20m.
There’s little doubting the Old Trafford outfit are lacking a stand-out talent, but if they don’t move quickly, they could miss out on one of Europe’s biggest potential stars.
After reviving their fortunes by defeating Manchester City in midweek, Jose Mourinho will be hoping to pick up a second successive win when Burnley make the short trip south.
The bookies make United 1/5 favourites for a much-needed three points.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing
