Man Utd chances of Semenyo transfer revealed by Romano with ‘talks held’ to offload £36.5m flop Amorim doesn’t trust | OneFootball

Manchester United are getting serious in their quest to win the race to sign Antoine Semenyo, though they must make space by moving on another star first, while our sources can reveal the two clubs the in-demand Bournemouth winger will likely choose from in January.

The electric Ghanaian winger has proved one of the best players in the Premier League this season, scoring seven goals and adding three assists in 15 appearances in the competition so far. Given he has an exit clause in his deal allowing him to leave if someone matches the £60m plus £5m in add-ons clause in his deal in the first phase of the January window, it looks highly likely that Semenyo will find himself at a new club sometime next month.

Interest in the Bournemouth star has come down to four sides, with Liverpool, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United all determined to win the race and having already held talks with the player’s representatives.

Back on December 4, our transfer correspondent, Dean Jones, exclusively first revealed that United interest in signing the 25-year-old was genuine, with Amorim a huge fan of the former Bristol City man, and with the Portuguese ready to prioritise his signing despite his very obvious need to bolster his midfield.

The well-connected Fabrizio Romano has since backed that theory up, though he states United’s prospects of a deal rest entirely on their ability to first find a new home for sparingly used Netherlands forward Joshua Zirkzee.

The £36.5m (€42.5m, $49.5m) signing from Bologna in summer 2024 has rarely shown the qualities that persuaded United to sign him in the first place, and a January move away from Old Trafford has been given the green light if a suitor can match their demands.

Now, with Zirkzee emerging as a prime target for Roma, Romano has provided an update via Tribuna: “Manchester United may make room for a move for Antoine Semenyo by letting Joshua Zirkzee leave – via a permanent transfer or a loan deal with an obligation to buy.

“Talks were held with AS Roma in London last week.”

Antoine Semenyo to pick between two clubs – Sources

While sources have confirmed United’s serious interest in triggering Semenyo’s clause, the decision on where he will go next will ultimately come down to the player’s personal choice – and we understand that, of the four clubs in the mix, it already looks set to come down to a showdown between two of them.

Per our transfer correspondent, Graeme Bailey, sources have informed us that the race is narrowing down to a head-to-head battle between Liverpool and Man City.

We’ve been able to confirm that Manchester City have spoken to Semenyo in recent days as they step up their interest in the Bournemouth star and look to win the race for his coveted signature.

City want more goals to lighten the load on Erling Haaland and sporting director Hugo Viana has started to make moves as they look to beat Liverpool to his signing.

We are told by sources close to the deal that City and Liverpool are the clubs Semenyo is considering most strongly at this stage, though it is City who are making real strides to land him so far.

Bournemouth, for their part, realise Semenyo is leaving and given they’re powerless to prevent an exit, they are working hard on potential replacements.

Earlier this week, we revealed how United’s transfer strategy sees the club increasingly focused on signing players already proven in the Premier League.

And off the back of that, we can reveal that three other players from Bournemouth, after Semenyo, are firmly on their transfer radar, though moves for any of them are likely to have to wait until the summer at least.

Elsewhere on the transfer front, reports from Italy claim United have their focus on a ‘legendary’ Inter Milan star as an alternative to Semenyo should they miss out on the 25-year-old.

Fanciful reports also claim United are ready to rival Arsenal in pursuit of a Juventus magician with the Red Devils ready to launch a sensational €100million (£88m) offer later this year.

United’s chances are aided by the surprisingly low wage the 20-year-old German-born star earns.