Man Utd preparing onslaught for ‘future England captain’ who costs half Anderson’s price | OneFootball

Manchester United are ready to battle Chelsea for the services of rising Bournemouth midfielder Alex Scott.

The Red Devils must sign at least two new midfielders in the summer to make up for Casemiro’s departure and Bruno Fernandes’ return to his original No.10 role.

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INEOS might even have to recruit a third if they end up selling the disappointing Manuel Ugarte.

Man Utd & Chelsea could duel for Bournemouth midfielder Alex Scott

Man Utd have been linked with some of the hottest names in the Premier League, including Elliot Anderson, Adam Wharton, Carlos Baleba, and Sandro Tonali. A recent report from the Telegraph also added Real Madrid star Aurelien Tchaouemi to the list.

However, with so many spots to fill, MUFC cannot afford to sign multiple targets with asking prices around £100 million, or even above, as in Anderson’s case.

Therefore, the management is also keeping tabs on more affordable profiles, and one of the tracks could lead to Alex Scott.

According to Caught Offside, the 22-year-old is now a concrete target for several Premier League clubs, and chief among them are Man Utd and Chelsea.

The Guernsey native started his career at his hometown club before joining Bristol City in 2020. Three years later, he made the £20 million move to Bournemouth, and he’s been on a steady rise ever since.

This season, Scott has been ever-present for the Cherries, making 33 league appearances, contributing with three goals and an assist.

Bournemouth are reportedly willing to entertain offers starting from £50 million, but they’re hoping for a bidding war that pushes up the price to £60m-£65m.

How Scott compares to Elliot Anderson

The midfielder has already been called up to the national team by Thomas Tuchel, but has yet to earn his international debut. And yet, the source reveals that observers feel he has all the required attributes to become England’s captain one day.

Scott might not be the flashiest player, but his contributions in the middle of the park cannot be undermined.

As the stats show, the 22-year-old excels in duels and winning back possession, and he’s even more proficient than Anderson in carrying the ball forward, albeit the latter has the edge in every other metric, especially in passing and distribution.

All in all, Anderson might be on another level, which explains Nottingham Forest’s astronomical asking price and Manchester City’s determination to sign him.

However, Man Utd might not be able to afford spending north of £100 million on a single midfielder when three new faces are required.

So perhaps INEOS could resort to the slightly younger Scott, who has the potential to become one of the finest box-to-box midfielders in the country, and perhaps pair with a deep-lying playmaker like Stuttgart’s Angelo Stiller, who should be available for £43 million.