Manchester United and Manchester City are firmly in the race to sign Antoine Semenyo from Bournemouth.
Semenyo has a £65m release clause in his contract which becomes active on January 1 and the forward is attracting interest from a number of top Premier League clubs.
City are keeping close tabs on developments with the 25-year-old, with Tottenham also keen – and some insiders believe Pep Guardiola’s side are now the strongest contenders for his signature.
United are considered serious rivals for both City and Spurs, however, with Liverpool believed to still be in the background.
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United have not been actively looking to sign another forward in January but believe the opportunity to sign Semenyo – which will come next month and for a set price – is something they must genuinely consider.
Semenyo, who has scored 29 goals in over 100 appearances for Bournemouth, has been of long-term interest to the bosses at Old Trafford, Sky Sports News has been told.
The biggest obstacle for United is financial, though. While they are not currently at risk of breaching the PSR regulations, a £65m fee could have serious repercussions on what they can afford to spend in the summer, where a defensive-midfielder is the absolute priority.
They are reluctant to get involved in a bidding war for Semenyo with some of the biggest clubs in the Premier League and will not jeopardise their ability to strengthen the midfield next summer in favour of another attacker.
Sky Sports News reported earlier this month that Spurs had intensified their interest in triggering Semenyo’s £65m release clause on January 1 – and Liverpool have long been keen on the player.
Arsenal have kept an eye on Semenyo’s development but – as it stands – they are well stocked in the forward areas and have five players who can play wide-left.
Despite the speculation over his future, Semenyo’s inner circle insist he remains exclusively focused on training, fitness and match performance for Bournemouth.
The south-coast club hope to keep the Ghana international, whose country will not be at the upcoming AFCON but will face England at next year’s World Cup.
What Amorim said about ‘special player’ Semenyo
Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim described Semenyo as a “special player” unprompted in his press conference ahead of Monday’s thrilling 4-4 draw with Bournemouth at Old Trafford.
“It is a top team, top manager with a special player,” Amorim said of Bournemouth, without clarifying which player he was referring to.
Asked if his comment was about Semenyo, he added: “Yes.”
Pressed on if he would like to sign the winger, who United were interested in over the summer, Amorim said: “It is not that case. There are a lot of special players in the league.
“What I feel is that [Bournemouth have] a top manager, top team – I really like the team – and a top play, I think he is a special player.”
United held strong interest in Semenyo over the summer but ended up signing Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha for the forward positions.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: skynews.com
