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Manchester United have reportedly tabled a bid for Inter Milan star Milan Skriniar this summer, per a report from Tuttosport (via Mirror).
Amid immense interest from various teams across Europe, Manchester United have focused their attention on the £58 million-rated centre-back, as they look to bolster their defence.
Despite Skriniar extending his contract at Inter last year, Manchester United feel they can prise him away from Italy with a lucrative offer. Skriniar might be interested at the prospect of joining what looks like an exciting project at Old Trafford.
Skriniar has long been linked with a move to the EPL, particularly Manchester United, who were targeting the Slovakian even before they snapped up Harry Maguire.
Manchester United have reportedly tabled an early bid for Skriniar
The reason Manchester United broke the bank for then-Leicester City star Maguire was because Skriniar had penned a contract extension at Inte, as mentioned above.
However, the aforementioned report states that a host of EPL clubs, including former champions Manchester City, are confident of landing the highly sought-after defender.
In fact, Manchester United are not the only bidders, as the report goes on to state that their cross-city rivals have supposedly matched the Red Devils' bid as well.
There's suddenly been a lot of interest in Skriniar again due to his struggles in the past six months or so in Antonio Conte's 3-5-2 or 3-4-3 system. After a string of poor performances, the Italian tactician replaced Skriniar with Danilo D'Ambrosio alongside Stefan de Vrij and Alessandro Bastoni. Inter reportedly don't consider him an unsellable asset anymore.
This has not just sparked speculation, but may have also reduced his market value. The Manchester United target, who joined in 2017, has notched up 36 appearances for the Serie A giants this season and is yet to win any silverware for with Inter.
Manchester United, meanwhile, have identified Skriniar as an option because they do not view Victor Lindelof as an ideal long-term partner for club captain Maguire.
More so, back-up centre-backs Phil Jones and Eric Bailly have not gained Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's trust completely. Their injury concerns mean they cannot be trusted to be available on a regular basis through the course of the season.
United's reported early pursuit of Skriniar may have come off the back of Manchester City's worries at the back this season. The Cityzens failed to replace Vincent Kompany last summer and lost Aymeric Laporte to a long-term injury early on in the season.
Guardiola had to field the likes of John Stones and Nicolas Otamendi at the heart of defence but they struggled for form and consistency. As a result, City faltered badly in the defence of their title.
Manchester United would certainly want to avoid a similar scenario and their reported pursuit of Skriniar is a sign of smart planning on the management's part.
Solskjaer's men will look to take advantage of Chelsea's defeat at the hands of Sheffield United and pick a win against Southampton at home on July 13.
Also read: Twitter explodes as Manchester United decimate Aston Villa 3-0
