Manchester United have lodged a £12.3 million bid for Porto’s central defender Nicolas Otamendi , Goal has learned. While the Portuguese club consider the Argentina international as a more expendable asset than his defensive partner Eliaquim Mangala, they have yet to take a decision on whether to sell. An aggressive though not especially quick defender, Otamendi has been at Porto since 2010, playing a part in Andre Villas- Boas famous treble-winning team in his first season at the club. The 25-year-old has made 16 full international appearances for his country, but has fallen out of favour since Alejandro Sabellas arrival as Argentina coach. Otamendis potential recruitment forms part of David Moyes plan to add five individuals at their peak of their playing careers to the club-record capture of Juan Mata. Uniteds new manager has sought to attribute blame for the clubs debilitating season to the Premier League winning squad he inherited from Sir Alex Ferguson, and has been granted unprecedented financial backing to overhaul it. Uniteds bid for Otamendi has been complicated by Manchester Citys attempt to recruit Mangala . Convinced they can achieve their lofty asking price of around £45m, Porto have so far refused to negotiate a fee for Mangala, who they intend to retain for the season. If City were to meet those demands, however, his sale would seriously damage Paulo Fonsecas attempt to retain the Portuguese title, and Uniteds likelihood of signing Otamendi.
Posted on: Fri, 31 Jan 2014 02:03:07 +0000
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