According to reports in the Guardian, Manchester United are in hot pursuit of German World Cup star Mats Hummels. It is believed that Louis Van Gaal desperately wants to sign the Borussia Dortmund defender as he is set to take charge of the Old Trafford outfit.
The high profile departures of Nemanja Vidic to Inter Milan and Rio Ferdinand leaving the club at the end of last season has meant that United have to address their back line ahead of the start of the next season.
Dortmund however won’t be willing to part with their prized asset and it is believed that Hummels’ price tag comes at a lofty €25m. The price tag however won’t deter United as Van Gaal has been offered a £200m kitty to get the club back on track after a disastrous 2013-14 season.
We had earlier reported that Hummels had expressed his desire to play for United but it is highly unlikely that this would be the summer that the German makes a switch. The defender has been in brilliant form for Joachim Loew’s side in the World Cup scoring a couple of goals, the most recent of them being his header in the narrow win over France in the quarter finals.
Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp has also praised the defender’s performance in Brazil, “The performance was incredible. Not only against Germany but throughout the World Cup.”
The Kagawa angle: English tabloid Daily Star has reported that United could use Shinji Kagawa as a bait to land Hummels but the credibility of the source is yet to be verified.
Kagawa has endured a frustrating spell at Old Trafford since joining from Dortmund but it would a no brainer for the German side to take their former play maker back to Westfalenstadion as Henrikh Mkhitaryan has dazzled in the number ten position vacated by the Japanese.
Verdict: United’s pursuit of Hummels makes sense but its is highly unlikely that Hummels will leave his Champions League aspirations to join United this summer.
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