Big Man Utd bid ‘would be accepted’, with transfer to shatter record and make Chelsea grin

Crystal Palace will say yes if Manchester United bid £60m for centre-back Marc Guehi, and why a club-record move would be greeted warmly at Chelsea has been revealed by multiple reports.

Centre-half is understood to be a position Erik ten Hag is keen to address in 2024. The Dutchman already has five established names at his disposal, though there are underlying issues with several of them.

Indeed, Raphael Varane has become increasingly injury prone in his later career. Harry Maguire is unfancied by Ten Hag and West Ham remain in the mix if the England international is turfed out.

The Hammers saw a £30m bid accepted over the summer, though Maguire refused to discuss personal terms with David Moyes’ side. Elsewhere, Jonny Evans is 35 and is only a stop-gap solution at the back.

One player Man Utd are known to be high on the idea of signing is Marc Guehi.

The 23-year-old has gone from strength to strength since leaving Chelsea for Crystal Palace in 2021.

Guehi cost the Eagles £18m and alongside Joachim Andersen, has quietly formed one of the league’s finest centre-back pairings at Selhurst Park.

Guehi is now a regular in Gareth Southgate’s England squads on the back of his exploits at club level. However, his stellar displays have also caught the eye at Old Trafford.

The South London Press, Football Insider, and our very own transfer expert Dean Jones have all confirmed Guehi is a wanted man at Man Utd.

Guehi is under contract with Palace until the summer of 2026. As such, the Eagles are in a strong bargaining position if and when the bids are tabled.

£60m to spring Guehi transfer, but not in January

Now, according to a fresh update from Football Insider, a bid of around £60m from United ‘would be accepted’ by Palace.

Any such move must wait until the summer, with Guehi reportedly against the idea of changing clubs mid-season. His reasoning there is he wants continuity and the assurance of regular starts at Palace to aid his England ambitions ahead of Euro 2024.

It’s expected to be a different story next summer, however, and a £60m deal would shatter Crystal Palace’s transfer record.

Their current most expensive deal – be it a signing or sale – remains the £50m received when Aaron Wan-Bissaka joined Man Utd in 2019.

£60m would comfortably top that sum, though Palace would not be in line to receive the full fee.

Any Guehi transfer good news for Chelsea

Chelsea inserted a sell-on clause in Guehi’s contract that entitles them to a percentage of any fee Palace collect for their defender.

The Mirror claimed the clause is set at 25 percent, while the Daily Mail stated it’s 20 percent.

Regardless, what is clear is the clause is present and Chelsea would be in line to receive a handy financial boost.

If Guehi were to move for £60m, Chelsea would collect either £15m (25 percent) or £12m (20 percent).

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