Manchester United have made contact to sign Barcelona winger Ousmane Dembele, according to reports.
United endured a disappointing 1-0 defeat to West Ham in Wednesday evening's Carabao Cup fixture. Despite the selection of brilliant forwards Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had the privilege of calling upon, the Reds were not able to penetrate a Hammers defence that had been rotated significantly since Sunday's dramatic 2-1 win at the London Stadium.
In Edinson Cavani's absence, the Norwegian opted for a front line of Jesse Lingard, Anthony Martial and Jadon Sancho. In light of Lingard's magical cameo on the weekend, many fans expected him to kick on in this fixture, having spent the second half of the season shining for David Moyes' side.
Unfortunately, neither he nor Martial and Sancho proved threatening enough to carve enough goalscoring chances for Solskjaer's side, who have now been eliminated from yet another competition during his tenure.
In light of United's struggles in attack, Spanish outlet El Nacional report that contact with France international forward Dembele has started, expressing a desire to bring him to Old Trafford. Should the 24-year-old fail to agree to a contract extension with the Catalan club, he will become a free agent this summer, thus making a move for United both financially sensible and viable.
Dembele has struggled with fitness since moving from Borussia Dortmund in 2017 but is still capable of the truly sensational moments of magic that encouraged then-Barca President Josep Bartomeu to part with an initial €105million for his signature. If Dembele can stay fit — judging by his recent injury history, it is a big if — United would be adding a young talent with time to develop to an exciting core of forwards.
With Edinson Cavani and Martial looking increasingly likely to depart this summer, Dembele has the potential to be a cost-efficient alternative with the potential to be one of the tremendous free-agent signings in recent memory.
Elsewhere, United could struggle to shift Martial this summer due to the price tag placed on him.
According to Eurosport, United have informed Martial he is free to leave the club, but they will only accept offers nearing the £40m mark for his services.
While there was early interest from Atletico and Barcelona, Martial's whopping £250,000 per week contract have cooled any interest in the forward for the time being. Due to his recent woes in front of goal, United could be forced to lower their asking price to secure a buyer for the 25-year-old.
