Exclusive: Man Utd interest in £75m England star genuine as Ten Hag eyes superb Maguire upgrade
Manchester United linked Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi
Manchester United’s interest in Marc Guehi is genuine but any move is going to have to wait until the summer transfer window, TEAMtalk understands.
England international Guehi is fast becoming one of the country’s most sought-after players, after he has enjoyed a brilliantly consistent run of form at Crystal Palace.
His partnership with Joachim Andersen is among the best in the Premier League and it is now becoming likely that this will be his final season at Selhurst Park.
United have identified him as a perfect candidate to help them ease fears over depth quality but in order to land him they are going to be paying a premium – as sources close to Palace have revealed the club expect it to top the £50m they received for Aaron Wan Bissaka by some distance.
He joined the Reds in 2019 but Palace will set a new club record for a player departure whenever Guehi leaves. Current estimates suggest a fee of £75million is going to be the target figure.
The chances of signing Guehi in January are very slim. Palace do not want to sell and the player wants to focus on retaining form and focus ahead of securing a spot in England’s squad for Euro 2024.
READ MORE: Kylian Mbappe: Crucial Man Utd update provided by Fabrizio Romano, as ‘star signing’ plan confirmed
Guehi could replace Maguire at Man Utd
The prospect of spending such a sum on an English centre-back may scare some United fans, given the rollercoaster of storylines around Harry Maguire since he joined from Leicester City for £80million.
United have to start thinking about how to evolve, however, and concerns around the longevity of Rafael Varane on top of the form of Victor Lindelof and Harry Maguire are central to that.
Maguire has been heavily linked with a move away from the Red Devils for some time and reports suggest he could be sold in January.
Guehi has plenty of top-flight suitors and speculation around his next club has been around since the last window, when both Arsenal and Spurs had a glance in his direction.
The potential fee – combined with a reluctance from Palace to sell – meant nothing was done but Newcastle also have an eye on the situation and Champions League football is something the player will be striving for when he eventually weighs up his next move.
