It’s the worst kept secret in football: Manchester United want to sign Jadon Sancho.
The 20-year-old is one of the biggest talents in the world having shown his incredible quality for Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga in recent years.
In 32 appearances in the league last season, Sancho scored 17 and registered 17 assists.
No wonder Dortmund are demanding around £110 million for him then.
However, it now seems that a fee that simply aren’t willing to pay.
On Tuesday night, reports emerged suggesting the Red Devils are threatening to walk away from a potential deal if the German club don’t lower their valuation.
The Athletic writes: “United believe this pre-coronavirus valuation does not adequately reflect the current economic climate and have concerns over the structuring of the payment.”
United are also wary of offering Sancho outlandish wages in the fear of disrupting squad morale by handing a youngster obscene amount of money.
Dortmund have set an artificial deadline of August 10 for a deal to be completed but United are already running out of time to negotiate a deal for Sancho that will likely be extremely complicated.
In fact, the club are already preparing for the deal not to be completed because, according to the Daily Mail, they’re already looking alternatives.
And they believe that includes Bayern Munich’s Kingsley Coman.
The French winger played 24 times for Bayern Munich last season, scoring four goals.
The 24-year-old is valued at £36 million by Transfermarkt. While Bayern will no doubt demand a fee in excess of that figure, it's clear Coman will come cheaper than Sancho.
GIVEMESPORT’s Rob Hoskin says:
Will he, won’t he?
Expect this Sancho to Man Utd saga to rumble on for weeks and weeks.
Some journalists were saying it’s a done deal, while others are now saying the two clubs are miles away in their valuations.
Don’t be surprised if we’re still waiting for a deal to be done as September turns to October, with the transfer window staying open until October 5.
You get the impression that all three parties want it to happen but Ed Woodward is clearly playing hardball right now.
Will he eventually cough up the money to get his No.1 target?
It could be a while before we find out…