Manchester United are reportedly eager to secure the services of Lille midfielder Boubakary Soumare, who is also a target for AC Milan.
According to a report by The Sun, Manchester United want to sign Boubakary Soumare as a long-term solution in midfield. The Premier League heavyweights, though, face stiff competition from AC Milan in the race to sign the French midfielder, with Lille reluctant to part ways with him in the January transfer window.
Soumare has been with Lille since the summer of 2017, when he left PSG as a free agent. The young midfielder made gradual progress in the first-team setup at Stade Pierre Mauroy, and it was the 2019/20 season that ended up being the breakthrough campaign for him, as he cemented his place in the middle of the park.
This season, Soumare has turned out 20 times across all competitions for Lille, playing a key role in front of defence for Les Dogues, who are thick in the action of the Ligue 1 title race and boast the second best defensive record in the top-flight. His progress, though, has alerted Manchester United among a bevy of other top clubs across Europe.
In fact, Manchester United were reportedly in battle with Arsenal to sign the 21-year-old in the summer transfer window as well, but a move did not materialise back then. The Red Devils instead chose to bolster their midfield by signing Donny van de Beek, who has yet to establish himself as a regular in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side.
The continued interest in Soumare, though, is a bit interesting, considering Fred has been a huge success in the holding midfielder role, with Nemanja Matic also filling in ably when required. Having said that, the Serb is on the wrong side of 30, meaning Manchester United need to lay down a succession plan for him.
To that end, Soumare might be a viable target for Manchester United, who can have two quality defensive midfielders in Fred and the 21-year-old. United, though, face stiff competition from AC Milan in pursuit of the youngster, although Calciomercato have claimed that Lille are reluctant to let him leave in January, which makes sense considering they are in the middle of a title fight.
Meanwhile, it is intriguing to note that Manchester United are eyeing Soumare as a replacement for Paul Pogba, seeing as his primary position is that of a holding midfielder. With Moises Caicedo also heavily linked with Manchester United, it will be interesting to see if they pursue a move for Soumare as well.
