Liverpool join Manchester United in pursuit of talented 21-year-old French defensive midfielder – reports

Manchester United have reportedly been joined by Premier League rivals Liverpool in a £50 million chase for French defensive midfielder Boubakary Soumare. The 21-year-old Frenchman has been linked to United before and will probably continue to be linked to the club who will be seeking to find a replacement for Nemanja Matic.

Both United and Liverpool could do with some reinforcement in the midfield this summer, at least defensively as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side looks to cut Liverpool’s lead over the fallen giants and lead them back to Premier League glory. Jurgen Klopp has seemingly thrown his hat into the ring, so to speak, seeking to get ahead of his rivals.

Soumare has played 30 times already this season and with the fact that Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 in France will not resume this season with all sporting events being cancelled until September, at the earliest because of the Coronavirus pandemic, that will be where his stats end. He has not scored a goal but has a solitary assist to his name.

The 21-year-old made his debut in Lille’s first team in 2017, closing up 51 appearances to date, which possibly shows the abilities of the player, which is something that United, Liverpool and any other potential suitor will be seeking to get a hand on their rivals ahead of the new season, whenever that may start.

Soumare has also been linked to Real Madrid with head coach, Zinedine Zidane keeping an eye on the player, whether the club are seeking to make solid their interest remains to be seen. United are being linked once again with the turbulent future of Paul Pogba, who seemingly wants to find a challenge elsewhere, although it may not happen for him.

It was reported that Soumare was offered a chance to play in the Premier League back in January with Newcastle United interested in the player, although he seemingly rejected the move. With the takeover of the club hotting up, they may return in the summer and beyond with an offer, possibly luring the player – who knows?

Soumare is a promising box-to-box midfielder who has been compared to Pogba, due to the physical nature of his play, not to mention his technical ability. He was part of Paris Saint-Germain’s academy, playing in the youth levels from 2011 until 2017 and seeking a move to Lille to be given a first team opportunity, which he has found.

The 21-year-old has been capped by France at every youth level from U16 to U21, playing a total of 39 times across the six age ranges. With United’s interest in the summer, it was clear they were looking at a number of options, possibly in view of Pogba’s departure, which never actually happened. Perhaps it will, sooner to later?

Now that United have looking into the creative problems at the club, signing Bruno Fernandes from Sporting CP in January and adding Shanghai Shenhua striker Odion Ighalo on a six-month loan deal, Pogba may feel settled at United again. Reports did suggest that he may sign a new contract, which has not come forth as yet.

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I support Manchester United, the greatest English football team to have ever existed. Bruno Fernandes is the latest in a long line of players with great ability to play for the club. I idolised Bryan Robson, David Beckham, Paul Scholes, and Eric Cantona growing up.