Man Utd reportedly has ‘concrete interest’ in signing Argentina and Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez as a replacement for David De Gea.
One of United’s priorities at the moment is to sort out its goalkeeping situation.
De Gea has been their first-choice ‘keeper for a few years but his position is in doubt with his current contract due to expire in 2023.
United have the option to automatically extend his deal by a further year until 2024 but they have seemingly decided against triggering this clause.
Earlier this week, it was confirmed that Marcus Rashford, Diogo Dalot, Luke Shaw, and Fred have had their deals extended until 2024.
As for De Gea, they want him to accept ‘lower terms’. The 32-year-old currently earns around £375,000 per week.
There was a time when De Gea was regarded as one of the best goalkeepers in the world but more mistakes are creeping into his game.
The Spaniard was also not included in Luis Enrique’s squad for the World Cup. The ex-Barcelona boss instead selected Unai Simon, Robert Sanchez, and David Raya.
Man Utd is understood to be looking at potential replacements for De Gea while they consider whether to keep their current player beyond this season.
Football Insiders are reporting that the Red Devils have ‘concrete interest’ in Villa shot-stopper Martinez.
The 30-year-old is said to be ‘highly-rated by United’s recruitment team’ and they have ‘watched him closely’ since he joined Aston Villa from Arsenal in 2020.
The report adds that Man Utd has been ‘further impressed by the elite mentality he demonstrated as Argentina won the World Cup in remarkable circumstances’.
He won the Golden Glove award as he helped the South American side win the World Cup for the third time by besting France in the final.
The goalkeeper saved Kingsley Coman’s spot-kick and he got in the head of Aurelien Tchouameni before the Real Madrid star shot wide. This saw Argentina win 4-2 on penalties after drawing 3-3 with France after extra time.
Martinez caused controversy after the final whistle. When he collected his Golden Glove award, he held the trophy over his groin and shouted to the crowd.
He later stated that this was done in response to jeers from France supporters during the final in Qatar.
Naturally, his actions have infuriated several former France players. Adil Rami has taken to Instagram (as cited by The Express) to hit out at Martinez.
“The biggest son of a b*tch in football. The most hated man.”
Martinez’s agent has hinted that his player could leave Aston Villa as he is ‘aiming for the Champions League’.
A problem Martinez may have at Aston Villa is that he reportedly does not get on with new boss Unai Emery.
Last month, Football Insider claimed that Martinez had a ‘fall-out’ with Emery during their time together at Arsenal.
They stated that his future at Villa is ‘under threat’ due to the ‘friction with new manager Emery’.
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