Manchester United Close To Signing $62M Star From Serie A: Report

Manchester United are reportedly close to signing Napoli midfielder Fabian Ruiz in the 2022 summer.

Manchester United are not the only Premier League side that is interested in Ruiz. The Red Devils may have to compete with Arsenal and Liverpool FC in the race to sign the 25-year-old midfielder, reported Italian media outlet La Repubblica.

The Red Devils are also trying to land West Ham’s Declan Rice, while Borussia Monchengladbach’s Denis Zakaria is also on the Old Trafford club’s radar, according to Teamtalk.

Manchester United are keen on signing a midfielder in the summer as the Red Devils’ current midfield options, Juan Mata, Jesse Lingard and Paul Pogba are all in the final six months of their contracts. In addition, Nemanja Matic’s deal ends in the summer of 2023.

At the end of the 2021-22 campaign, Ruiz will enter the final year of his contract with Napoli and he has not agreed to an extension yet. The Repubblica report has further claimed that the Serie A side is looking to sign a new midfielder in the summer. Napoli’s Sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli is targettting Sassuolo’s Davide Fratessi in the summer.

Napoli are expected to soon hold a meeting with their Serie A counterparts over a transfer but they may face competition from Inter for Fratessi’s signature.

Meanwhile, Napoli also do not want to lose Ruiz for free if the Spaniard is not going to renew his contract. The 25-year-old midfielder, who joined Napoli in the summer of 2018, has made 148 appearances for the Serie A side, across all competitions. Ruiz has scored 20 goals and provided 14 assists so far for Napoli. Meanwhile, he has also notched up 15 caps with Spain’s senior team.

Napoli are aware that they’ll receive a big amount for Ruiz, whose current market value is around $62 million, according to Transfermarkt.