Manchester United Chase $24M Brazilian Winger Who Was Once City’s Target: Report

Manchester United are reportedly still interested in signing Brazil winger Gabriel Veron in the ongoing transfer window. The Red Devils were first linked with Palmeiras’ teenage forward Veron in November 2019.

In the underway summer market, Manchester United may have to rival Serie A outfit Sassuolo in Veron’s transfer case, reported Italian media outlet Il Resto Del Carlino.

After the signing of midfielder Jadon Sancho, Manchester United are looking to sign a striker to strengthen their attack. Sassuolo are expected to make an official bid 'within a few days,' and that means, if the Red Devils want to land Veron at Old Trafford, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side will have to act quickly, according to another Italian publication Calciomercato.

While Palmeiras had initially demanded a fee of around $24 million for Veron, the Calciomercato report stated that the deal could be closed at a fee of $19 million.

Moreover, Veron was once on the target list of the Red Devils’ neighbors Manchester City. The Etihad side had contacted Veron's representatives in February, according to the player's agent.

"These are situations that I cannot anticipate. There are talks with some clubs and the proposals are expected to become official,” Lupercio Segundo was quoted by Teamtalk, as telling Europa Calcio in an interview. However, there are no reports suggesting the Etihad side’s possible attempt to sign the Brazilian winger.

Veron started his soccer career with Santa Cruz de Natal’s youth side in 2015 before moving to Palmeiras, one of the most successful clubs in Brazil, two years later. He signed his first professional deal with Verdão in 2018. A year later, he signed a pre-contract that would keep him Palmeiras’ player until 2024. The deal activated when he turned 18 in September 2019.

A few months later, Veron made his first-team debut in Brazilian league Serie A, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 1–0 away loss against Fluminense.

Across two seasons with Palmeiras, Veron has netted 11 goals and five assists in as many as 40 matches, across all competitions.

Having represented Brazil’s Under-17 on multiple occasions, including the 2019 U-17 World Cup, the teenage sensation is known for his versatile play. While he mostly operates as a right-sided attacker, he is also capable of playing on the left and through the middle.