Manchester United seek Raphael Varane’s replacement as they chase former Barcelona star Jean-Clair Todibo in the winter transfer window. As per several media outlets, it has been reported that Todibo is the number one target on United’s radar to replace Varane at Old Trafford. The 24-year-old is currently signed with Ligue 1 side Nice after his loan deal was made permanent by Barcelona in June last year. Todibo’s move to the Premier League still seems to be ‘virtually impossible’ as United would need to free up some room by securing deals for their current players. Serie A side AC Milan joining the race to acquire the young Frenchman doesn’t help the situation either.
Despite winning multiple accolades with Real Madrid, Raphael Varane just couldn’t find his former self at Old Trafford. His inconsistency in a United shirt has forced Erik ten Hag to put his defender up for sale at a fee of €30 million. This means that the English side would also require an ideal replacement for the highly decorated defender. That is where Jean-Clair Todibo comes in. The young Frenchman had signed for Barcelona in July 2019 after his contract with Toulouse had expired. Having made a minimal impact with the Catalans, Todibo was soon loaned off to Bundesliga side Schalke 04 with an option to buy for €25 million. After his loan deal with the German club had expired, Todibo was next sent to Primera Liga side Benfica in October 2020. His loan contract was soon mutually terminated by both Barcelona and Benfica as the player found a suitable role in Nice.
This season, Jean-Clair Todibo has helped build a rock-solid defence at Nice. During the first part of the Ligue 1 campaign, Nice conceded only nine goals. They are currently in the second position on the league table. His impressive stint with Nice has attracted a ton of attention from other European clubs like AC Milan and Chelsea as well. Milan’s entry to the Todibo race is mainly due to them potentially losing Fikayo Tomori to Bayern Munich this season. This has resulted in the Serie A side’s pursuit of the French international that could end up hurting United.
Despite the massive transfer interests for Jean-Clair Todibo, Nice are not looking to sell their player, especially in the winter transfer window. They are currently in a heated title race with Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1. Selling off their defensive stalwart mid-season could tarnish their chances of winning the title. Hence, we will likely not see an agreement for the French international until the upcoming summer transfer window.
Comments
0 comment