Man Utd will need to match Raphael Varane fee to sign star they’ve been chasing for months

Manchester United will reportedly have to pay the same sum that they paid to recruit Raphael Varane in order to bring Jeremie Frimpong to Old Trafford later this year. The Red Devils are thought to be intent on upgrading their defensive ranks between now and the start of next season and have been linked with a move for Frimpong, who has been turning heads in Germany in recent months.

The 22-year-old has contributed eight goals and five assists in the Bundesliga this season while helping to keep six clean sheets, and his play has drawn the attention of Erik ten Hag as he seeks to bolster his squad when the bidding opens in the summer. According to Sky Deutschland, United is considering formalizing its interest in Frimpong in the near future but will need to pay a significant sum to persuade Leverkusen to sell.

According to reports, Frimpong will only be sold if a bid of around £40 million is made, which is the same amount Manchester United paid to sign Varane from Real Madrid two summers ago. Behind-the-scenes talks with Frimpong’s entourage are understood to have already taken place, providing a lot of encouraging early indicators for United’s hopes of completing a deal.

United’s interest in Frimpong is thought to be long-standing, and his agent has apparently been scouting the market in recent months in order to find his client a new higher-profile squad. The Red Devils already have Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Diogo Dalot on their books, but Ten Hag is said to believe that his squad’s right-back position can be strengthened before the start of next season.

Frimpong came through Manchester City’s youth system and had a successful spell at Celtic before joining Bayer Leverkusen in January of last year. He is largely considered one of the Bundesliga’s best right-backs as a result of his recent form at the club level, and he appears to be bound for larger and better things if he can maintain his present upward trajectory.

Leverkusen director Simon Rolfes has already praised Frimpong’s abilities, claiming that some aspects of his game are quite strong and using his signing to demonstrate the club’s scouting model’s effectiveness in uncovering diamonds with sky-high potential.

“His ability to accelerate and decelerate is world-class,” Rolfes stated in a Bulinews.com interview. “If you’re world-class at something at Celtic and in the Bundesliga, you’re world-class in other leagues as well.”

“There were other things he needed to work on when he arrived, and he’s done well.” He has the desire to improve himself. Frimpong’s signing is a wonderful example of how we use data. We were searching for a quick full-back, and he was immediately on the list; we then dug deeper and analyzed him.”