Man Utd could land cut-price Varane replacement after latest twist

Manchester United could make a return for an old target to replace Raphael Varane this summer, and he could be available at a bargain price.

United in need of defensive additions

Manchester United’s defence has been the subject of constant scrutiny this season. Harry Maguire has remained at the club and somewhat returned to the fold, but had previously been strongly linked with a move to West Ham over the summer and could well be on the move again if Erik ten Hag is granted a stay of execution.

Meanwhile, Lisandro Martinez has been sidelined for much of the campaign, and there has been constant speculation linking Raphael Varane with a move to Saudi Arabia this summer. With Victor Lindelof’s long-term future also uncertain, it is clear that a defensive overhaul will be necessary at Old Trafford no matter who is at the helm.

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Enter, Trevoh Chalobah. The Chelsea defender has been on the radar of Manchester United previously, with his versatility thought to be a major factor in their interest. Chalobah can play at centre-back or right-back comfortably, and he was strongly linked with a move to Bayern Munich in January, only for the Bavarian giants to opt to sign Eric Dier instead due to Chelsea’s hefty asking price.

With Dier now having confirmed his permanent move to Bayern, and Chalobah’s biggest admirer Thomas Tuchel leaving the club at the end of the season, there could be less competition for the Englishman’s signature.

Chalobah has largely missed this season after picking up an injury at the beginning of the campaign, with Pochettino instead opting for other options over the Englishman. He made his first start of the season in their most recent outing, but could not prevent them from slipping to a 2-2 draw against London rivals Brentford, a result which leaves them 11th in the Premier League with 11 games left to play.

Chelsea need to sell in latest twist

Chelsea’s latest financial results paint a grim picture, with the club posting a loss of £90m for the financial year, and the Telegraph report that ‘Chelsea’s rivals believe the club need to raise at least £100 million by June 30’.

It means that just like last summer, Chelsea are under pressure to balance their books for financial fair play reasons. Unfortunately for them, however, the figure that they need to raise is now thought to be even greater than last summer, and they can no longer rely on their golden goose to get out of trouble, having sold him to Manchester United for £60m 12 months ago.

They could well be on their way to raising some of those funds already, with options to buy included in loan moves for both Ian Maatsen and Lewis Hall. Should both deals go through, that could raise around £70m of pure profit, but they are thought to need a further £30m, something which is most easily achieved by selling homegrown talent.

To that end, the options are limited to Armando Broja (on loan at Fulham), Conor Gallagher and Chalobah, who has drawn admiring eyes from Old Trafford for a long time. It may be an opportune moment for clubs to re-open lines of communications for those players, with pressure firmly on the selling side to strike a deal quickly, and a potential bargain to be had.