After months of waiting, Manchester United have finally begun work on a last-minute loan deal for Fiorentina midfielder Sofyan Amrabat, according to reports.
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Manager Erik ten Hag has been eager to add a new holding midfielder to his squad to provide cover, competition and support for Casemiro and quickly earmarked Amrabat as the ideal addition.
The pair worked together when Ten Hag was manager of Utrecht between 2015 and 2017, with the midfielder emerging under the Dutchman’s tutelage, and he has excelled in recent seasons at Fiorentina.
Despite their long-standing interest, United have waited until the final couple of days of the transfer window to finally formalise their interest but The Athletic are reporting that a deal is at last in the works.
At one point, Fiorentina were thought to be demanding in excess of £30million for the 27-year-old but United are hoping to secure a last-minute loan deal.
Amrabat has refused a host of other offers including lucrative deals from Saudi Arabia and is adamant he only wants to move to United.
The Morocco international is yet to play for Fiorentina this season due to the uncertainty surrounding his future and has even been training alone.
United are unable to pursue a permanent deal due to their financial fair play situation and are hoping that Fiorentina, with no other offers on the table, will agree to a loan.
Further negotiation will be necessary and United may need to agree to an obligation to buy next summer in order to get the Serie A side to agree to a loan.
Amrabat is currently only under contract until 2024 but the Italian club do have the option to extend his deal by a further 12 months, with the midfielder likely to sign an extension before any loan would be greenlit.
United have been linked with other midfielders, such as Bayern Munich’s Ryan Gravenberch, but talks are not progressing on that front and Amrabat is very much Ten Hag’s number one target.
The Red Devils will need to move very quickly to wrap up the deal, with the window closing on midnight on Friday, while they also have several other deals they are working on.
As soon as Dean Henderson’s move to Crystal Palace has been rubberstamped, United will complete a deal for Fenerbahce’s Altay Bayindir – who is already in Manchester waiting – while they are also in talks with Chelsea over an emergency move for Marc Cucurella.
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