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Sunday 3 June
Dalot battle
Manchester United face a battle with eight clubs to land Porto defender Diogo Dalot.
And now it appears they may even have to pay more than his release clause to land him this summer.
The defender is among Jose Mourinho’s targets for the summer but would only cost around £19m.
Dalot has a release clause of £17.5m and Mourinho remains confident of doing a deal, according to the Manchester Evening News.
A source close to the player said: “Nobody wants to activate a release clause, nobody ever does.
“The release clause must be activated by the player so the club has to give the money to the player and the player has to pay taxes on that money.
“The club has to pay more to compensate the player and so on. Besides, the clause can only be activated on June 30 and Manchester United wants to make sure they secure the player before that because several other clubs are willing to pay €20m plus.
“Paying more in a normal transfer fee is less than what they would have to spend if the player activates the clause.”
Fred deal close
Fred will become Manchester United’s first summer signing this week.
The Brazil star is currently in the north west with his national side as they face Croatia today at Anfield.
But he will head up to Manchester in the coming days and undergo a medical with United.
He should complete the formalities before leaving the UK with Brazil this week.
Bale waiting game
Gareth Bale is prepared to keep Manchester United waiting for a decision on his future until he sees who is going to replace Zinedine Zidane in the hot-seat at Real Madrid.
Bale hinted after scoring two goals in the Champions League final against Liverpool that he wanted to quit the club to play regular first-team football.
That alerted United boss Jose Mourinho, who has been keen on luring him to Old Trafford, that a deal might be possible for the player this summer.
Real are keen to tie him down to a new long-term deal but Bale won’t be rushed and will only commit when he receives reassurances that he won’t be sidelined by Real’s incoming boss.
Martial ultimatum
Anthony Martial has urged Manchester United to decide on his future.
The France ace, left out of the World Cup squad, is in limbo with links with a move but also the club intimating they could start talks over a new deal.
Martial wants a big jump in wages – from £85,000 a week to £150,000 a week – to commit his future to the club and is keen for his future to be clear in the coming weeks.
But Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho is still keeping an eye on Gareth Bale’s situation at Real Madrid and is keen on Willian at Chelsea.
Martial would look to be the obvious fall guy for either of those to come in after Alexis Sanchez was signed in January.
