Manchester United are reportedly plotting a swoop for Atletico Madrid’s Jan Oblak as a replacement for current first-choice and contract rebel David de Gea.
As reported by the Express, Manchester United are lining up a summer swoop for Atletico Madrid and Slovenia goalkeeper Jan Oblak as current No. 1 David de Gea’s future at the club continues to hang by a thread.
David de Gea entered the final year of his contract with Manchester United this summer. Negotiations over a new deal have been going on for over a year now, but the two parties haven’t been able to arrive at an agreement, which has become a cause for concern for the Red Devils.
There had been reports claiming that the Spaniard was close to agreeing a new long-term contract worth £350,000-a-week with Manchester United. However, The Sun revealed last week that de Gea was set to snub the offer on the table from the 20-time English champions and leave the club on a free transfer when his current deal runs out.
De Gea’s contract situation has led to some degree of interest from Serie A champions Juventus, who are reportedly planning to open pre-contract talks with 28-year-old over a summer move. And as per the report from Express, Manchester United are aware of these developments and are preparing a contingency should they fail to extend de Gea’s deal, with Oblak emerging as a potential replacement.
Oblak is regarded as one of the best goalkeepers across Europe. The Slovenian international joined Atletico Madrid from Portuguese side Benfica in the summer of 2014 and has amassed 211 appearances, in which he has kept a total of 119 clean sheets while also winning the UEFA Europa League.
This is not the first time that the 26-year-old has been on Manchester United’s radar, with the Red Devils having been linked with the Atletico superstar on numerous occasions in the past, including this past summer.
Oblak signed a new contract with Atletico Madrid in April earlier this year, extending his stay at the Wanda Metropolitano till the summer of 2023. And, it will be extremely difficult for Manchester United to convince Los Rojiblancos to part with their star custodian.
Despite his dodgy form over the past year or so, de Gea is an incredibly vital player for Manchester United. And losing him, that too on a free transfer, would be a major blow for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side. However, Oblak would be the perfect candidate to replace the Spanish international should de Gea indeed decide to run down his contract at Old Trafford.
