Man Utd Open Talks to Sign Julian Alvarez With Swap Deal Mooted

James joined Football FanCast in 2016 following a three-year spell working for Shoot Magazine, working his way up from freelance writer to editor, before moving across to GMS in 2020.

James has created exclusive, opinion and news content on GIVEMESPORT, with a predominant focus on the Premier League.

He has also developed strong working relationships with top tier journalists such as Fabrizio Romano, Dharmesh Sheth and Ben Jacobs, regularly chatting to them as part of an exclusives initiative. Sign in to your GiveMeSport account Manchester United have started talks with Atletico Madrid superstar Julian Alvarez and his agents over a summer move to Old Trafford, according to journalist Marcos Duran, with a potential swap deal even mooted.

Man United's main focus so far in the summer transfer window has been on strengthening their midfield, with one deal set to be officially completed next month.

The Red Devils have already agreed a fee with Atalanta and personal terms with Ederson, who is expected to seal his move to Old Trafford next month after the conclusion of the 2026 World Cup.

Having found moves to sign Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest or Aurelien Tchouameni from Real Madrid too difficult to advance, club chiefs quickly identified Mateus Fernandes of West Ham United as their leading target.

Despite the Hammers' relegation to the Championship, they are in no mood to sell the 21-year-old on the cheap and are demanding between £80-85m for his services, which is double what they paid Southampton for the Portugal international 12 months ago.

The price is proving an issue even though the player is keen on the switch to link up with compatriot Bruno Fernandes at the 'Theatre of Dreams', while Tottenham Hotspur's increasing interest in the player is a problem as they are said to be willing to meet their London neighbours' financial demands.

United are also looking at other positions too, including the centre-forward spot.

Samuel Luckhurst reported on Wednesday that United buying a new striker this summer is essential, as they can't afford to rely on Joshua Zirkzee as a back-up to Benjamin Sesko ahead of their return to the Champions League.

La Liga giants Real Madrid, who had a £130m bid rejected, and Barcelona have both shown interest in prising Julian Alvarez away from Atletico this summer, with the player publicly saying this week that he wants to leave.

Now, Marcos Duran says that a second Premier League club, after Arsenal, in Manchester United have made contact with the Argentina international's agents over a move.

The journalist says that United are ready to show ambition following their return to the Champions League, but hints that they are unlikely to be viewed as the star's preferred club.

In a separate post on X, Duran also claims that Atletico and Diego Simeone have an interest in 'several' United players, with talks already held for one of them.

A potential swap deal is suggested then, but a move for Alvarez to join United remains 'complicated' because of the player's desire to explore moves to the other clubs interested in his services instead.

Given Real have already had a £130m bid rejected, the Red Devils would need to obliterate their transfer record to bring the Argentine to Old Trafford.

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