Manchester United Contacts Chelsea Target's Agent; Club Chief Confirms Exit

Manchester United is reportedly trying to steal a vital cog on the radar of rivals Chelsea and Manchester City after making contact with the agent of David Alaba over a potential move next summer.

Bayern Munich chief Karl-Heinz Rummenigge confirmed that the defender will be leaving next summer when his contract expires.

Alaba is in the final year of his contract with the German club and looks unlikely to extend his current deal. He has been a regular for the Bundesliga club, with whom he has spent most of his professional career by winning nine league titles along with the prestigious UEFA Champions League trophy.

The Austrian defender, who can play at either left-back or center-back, will be allowed to negotiate a pre-contract with clubs outside Germany from January. Alaba, 28, is certain to have a number of clubs vying for his signature.

Initial reports indicated that Real Madrid and Barcelona were the top contenders for his signature. However, according to Spanish publication AS, English Premier League sides such as Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea also have a strong interest and are said to have contacted Pini Zahavi, the player’s agent.

Manchester United had initially made Red Bull Leipzig defender Dayot Upamecano their top defensive target, but the club's hefty demands are said to have turned their attention towards Alaba.

Bayern was keen to hold on to the Austrian booter, but their contract offer was turned down and Rumminegge is uncertain if they will return with a new package.

“Bayern did everything we could to try and reach an agreement,” Rummenigge said, as quoted by Marca. “We had a lot of conversations, but we wanted answers from him by the end of October.”

“This didn’t happen and I don’t know if we’ll return to the negotiations,” he added. “What I want to be clear about is that our offer showed exactly how much we value him, but he didn’t accept it.”

Rumminigge, however, was not willing to speculate about which clubs are showing interest in the player. He simply made it clear that Alaba will be free to speak to various clubs about a pre-contract from Jan. 1.

"I don't know anything about the Real Madrid rumors," Rummenigge stated. "He's free to speak to whoever he wants from January 1".