Man United have been dealt a blow in their pursuit of Randal Kolo Muani according to The Mirror, with Eintracht Frankfurt demanding £78m for his services this summer.
What is the latest on Man United signing Kolo Muani?
The Red Devils are eager to sign a striker during the summer, with Erik Ten Hag eyeing some reinforcements in attack during the transfer window. A fresh forward is seen as a "priority" for the club and the boss wants to bring in another addition in that position.
Short of Marcus Rashford, who so far has 16 goals in the Premier League so far this campaign, no other forward has more than four goals during the season. Anthony Martial has that amount, with on-loan attacker Wout Weghorst yet to bag in the top flight for them despite playing in 14 games. Jadon Sancho and Antony have five and four respectively but both are seen more as wingers than typical number nines.
It means that a goalscoring striker is a must for the club this summer – and Kolo Muani has recently emerged as a potential target for United. The player has bagged 13 goals in 28 starts for Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga so far this season – more than any other Red Devils forward not named Rashford.
However, their pursuit of the 24-year-old has taken a blow today with the news from TeamTalk (via The Mirror) that Frankfurt want around 90 million Euros (or £78m) to convince them to part ways with the striker. That would be one of the biggest expenditures in Old Trafford history – something that could deter interest in the player from Erik Ten Hag according to this report.
Should Man United go for Kolo Muani?
The Red Devils are in need of some fresh legs up front, of that there is no question. They have managed only 49 goals in the Premier League so far this season and only Aston Villa in the top ten have a worse record than them, despite the fact they're currently in the top four. If you take away the goalscoring prowess of Rashford then, things would be bleak for the Red Devils and a striker therefore needs to be a priority.
Kolo Muani could certainly change that if he did make the move to Old Trafford. The forward has gone better and better every season of his career, starting out with nine goals for Nantes before hitting 12 for the French side and now 13 in Germany. It shows that the forward is continuing to get better, regardless of club and country, and if he could hit double digits it would be an instant improvement for the club.
In addition, the player's former coaches have praised his ability, with Vincent Santos hailing his "explosiveness" and stating he is a "decisive" player who loves to "dribble" with the ball.
Muani then ticks plenty of boxes for United – especially on the goal front. However, the asking price being asked for begs the question of whether there is a cheaper and better options out there for the Red Devils.