• United make offer in region of £25m for Arsenal forward
• Henrikh Mkhitaryan offered as a makeweight but salary a stumbling block
Manchester United have made a bid to sign Alexis Sánchez from Arsenal as José Mourinho attempts to scupper Manchester City’s hopes of securing the arrival of the Chile forward this month.
Sánchez has already agreed personal terms worth around £250,000 a week with Pep Guardiola’s side, with City having submitted a £20m offer for the 29-year-old earlier this week. Arsenal have yet to respond to that but it is understood that United have since entered the race with a bid that is believed to be in the region of £25m.
Their proposal would also see Sánchez earn more than he has been offered by City, with Mourinho believed to be confident of winning the race despite the forward having played under Guardiola at Barcelona.
Arsenal have also been offered the opportunity to sign Henrikh Mkhitaryan, although a stumbling block to that deal could be the Armenian international’s wages, which are believed to be around £200,000 a week.
Arsène Wenger is keen on signing Malcom from Bordeaux as a direct replacement for Sánchez and has held preliminary talks with his agent this week. The Brazilian forward is understood to have another firm proposal to leave this month, although it is understood not to have come from either United or Tottenham, who have both been linked with the 20-year-old in recent weeks.
Bordeaux are demanding a fee of €50m and would prefer to retain him until the end of the season. The situation is complicated by his ownership status, with the French side reported to own only 50% of his economic rights and the remainder held by a number of agents.
Reported by TheGuardian
