Manchester United ditch Mason Mount pursuit in favour of £80m Moises Caicedo – Paper Round

United to move on from Mount bid

After seeing their third bid for Mason Mount rejected, Manchester United will instead bid for Moises Caicedo,

The Brighton player will cost more than Mount, but given his age, United are willing to pay up.

“The Red Devils are now set to go after Brighton ace Moises Caicedo instead.

“The Red Devils are willing to pay more for Caicedo than they would have for Mount – given that he is just 21 and contracted at Brighton until at least 2027.

“Roberto De Zerbi’s men are said to value the Ecuadorian at around £80m.”

De Gea now set for United stay

Manchester United’s difficult financial situation means that Erik ten Hag may now be keen to keep David de Gea at Old Trafford so that he does not need to splash out on a new goalkeeper.

“De Gea, 32, will become a free agent next weekend – and United have told him he will have to take a significant cut on his current £375,000-a-week wages to extend his 12-year Old Trafford stay.

“The haggling with Chelsea over Mason Mount illustrates how they are now counting every pound. United’s latest offer of £50 million plus a £5million package of add-ons has been rejected.

“Sales could add another £100million-plus to Ten Hag’s war chest. But the Dutchman would still prefer De Gea to stay as his No 1 rather than spend a significant sum on a replacement keeper.”

Tottenham to start with low Maddison bid

The Mail reports that Tottenham will bid around half of James Maddison’s valuation as they attempt to sign the Leicester City playmaker.

“Ange Postecoglou, Tottenham’s new manager, wants a creative midfield force, and England international Maddison fits that bill.

“Rumblings from the recent England camp suggested Maddison is set on a move to Spurs, particularly after Newcastle moved for Milan’s Sandro Tonali.

“Leicester want £60m for the 26-year-old, who has one year left on contract, but Spurs’ initial proposal is around half that figure.”

City target Hakimi

With Kyle Walker set to depart for Bayern Munich, Spanish newspaper Marca believes that Manchester City will move for Paris Saint-Germain full-back Achraf Hakimi.

“To that end, Pep has already set his sights on a player who would improve the squad in a superlative way: PSG’s Achraf Hakimi.

“With the futures of llkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva and Kyle Walker in doubt, the English side have moved to try and catch a fish in the troubled waters of PSG, who are focusing all their efforts on retaining Kylian Mbappe.

“The Citizens, who are well on their way to signing Mateo Kovacic and hope to do the same with compatriot Josko Gvardiol, have been forced to look to the market for a replacement for Walker.”