No other player from the Liga Sagres have been linked with Premier League clubs so heavily in recent years than Sporting’s William Carvalho. Manchester United have had scouted him for uncountable number of times in the last two years or so. Although that interest died down a bit under new manager Louis van Gaal, with names like Arturo Vidal and Kevin Strootman are now being linked on a daily/weekly basis, Carvalho was linked towards with the Red Devils frequently towards the end of the transfer window.
Arsenal were also interested in him and the Gunners had even lodged formal bids to secure his signature. He has a contract till 2018 with a reported buy-out clause of €45m. Sporting were willing to do a negotiation with the Gunners for a slightly cheaper rate, but the deal collapsed, as Arsenal could only offer Sporting a two part-payment deal for the 22-year-old midfielder.
Carvalho is happy to stay in Portugal at the moment but feels he needs to move to either Premier League or the La Liga to grow as a player.
He said in an interview with the official magazine of the Portuguese Football Federation as noted by A Bola: “I wouldn’t say I was disappointed (not to leave this summer) but we all have ambitions and even if I’m happy at Sporting I’d like to play in one of the best leagues in the world – La Liga or PL – one day. It didn’t happen this year but if I keep working like I have been it surely will at some point.”
Well, his situation hasn’t changed a bit. Sporting will try to squeeze out maximum profit (keeping the third party ownership in mind) from any potential deal, even if any club refuse to meet his buy-out clause. Arsenal and Manchester United both need a strong defensive midfielder, but will any of them make a formal approach for him again in January?
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