Bharath Rammr
Manchester United are reportedly contemplating the prospect of entering the race to sign Benfica’s Goncalo Guedes, as per Portuguese publication Record, (h/t via Sport Witness). Regarded as one of the highly talented attacking players in the Benfica set up, he has been linked with various European clubs over the last few months. He would have joined Valencia in a €30 million deal had it not been for the financial difficulties faced by the Spanish club.
Guedes is being increasingly seen by Arsenal as the perfect replacement for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who is contemplating the idea of leaving Arsenal at the end of his contract or even earlier. The England winger’s contract runs out in the summer of 2018 and he has not yet gone closer towards signing a new deal. He is thought to be concerned about his importance at Arsenal. Manager Arsene Wenger has taken off Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in 27 out of the last 34 league games. In terms of form, he has been on and off and this has not helped his Arsenal career.
At a time when a number of Arsenal’s England youngsters like Jack Wilshere are facing uncertain futures, it remains to be seen if Oxlade-Chamberlain signs a new deal.
Arsenal are not the only club interested in signing Guedes, who is valued at around £25 million. Guedes has the same agent, Jorge Mendes, as manager José Mourinho and this link has been vital in signing many players in the past. It would not be surprising if United enter into the race to sign the 20-year-old.
Goncalo Guedes has been with Benfica throughout his career and he came through the ranks at the club. His immense talent helped him make his debut for the Portugal national team in 2015, although he has not been able to add to the two appearances. Since he has a contract with regard to the summer of 2021, the Portuguese club are certainly in a strong position when it comes to negotiating a sizeable transfer fee. Benfica are intact with their €40 million asking price and are in the process of offering the player a new deal with an even bigger release clause, to sell the player.
Manchester United were expected to sign only defensive players in this January transfer window and Victor Lindelof and Jose Fonte have been some of the players heavily linked with the club. Since the team has been performing well in a defensive manner, it looks like Mourinho has switched his attention to players like Goncalo Guedes.
