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Lautaro Martinez will be at the centre of a three-way transfer tussle as Manchester United (opens in new tab), Arsenal (opens in new tab) and Chelsea (opens in new tab) all vie for the Inter Milan (opens in new tab) striker’s signature, according to reports.
Martinez helped Argentina win the World Cup last year and is said to be open to a Premier League switch this summer, having scored 89 goals in 212 games for Inter – who he joined from Buenos Aires-based Racing Club four-and-a-half years ago.
According to Football Insider (opens in new tab), the 25-year-old could be available for as little as £70m (he’s currently valued at just over £66.5m by Transfermarkt (opens in new tab)).
For some context, such a fee would be below United and Chelsea’s previous record transfer outlays: £89m for Paul Pogba and £106.8m for Enzo Fernandez respectively.
Arsenal haven’t been able to match the spending power of their two Premier League rivals, although they did pay a touch over £70m for their record signing: mega-flop Nicolas Pepe.
United and Chelsea are both expected to be in the market for a new number nine this summer, with the two clubs having to somewhat improvise in the position for the time being.
As things stand, the Red Devils are using loanee Wout Weghorst as a stop-gap following Cristiano Ronaldo’s acrimonious departure (although the goals have flowed from wide thanks to Marcus Rashford’s remarkable renaissance) – while the Blues have yet to directly replace Romelu Lukaku, who endured a disastrous return to Stamford Bridge and is currently back at Inter on loan.
Arsenal’s don’t have pressing need in that department, however: the Gunners signed Gabriel Jesus last summer and have seen Eddie Nketiah truly break through during the Brazilian’s injury lay-off since the World Cup.
It would be something of a surprise to see Martinez wind up at the Emirates Stadium, but a battle between United and big-spending Chelsea – who splurged more than £300m in January alone – seems entirely possible.
The latest talk of Premier League interest comes after Martinez revealed that he went into the World Cup carrying an ankle injury (opens in new tab), providing some explanation for his failure to score at the tournament.
More Manchester United stories
In other transfer news, it has been reported that United could get the chance to sign January loan arrival Marcel Sabitzer permanently from Bayern Munich this summer (opens in new tab).
As for potential departures during in the transfer window, Harry Maguire could be on his way out of Old Trafford: the Red Devils are reportedly prepared to accept a £40m loss as they look to sell their captain (opens in new tab).
Meanwhile, former United chairman Martin Edwards has spoken to FFT about how the club’s 1991 European Cup Winners’ Cup victory helped changed the perception of English football across the continent (opens in new tab).
