Real Madrid‘s reported interest in Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea may be dominating the transfer headlines, but according to the Daily Mail‘s Mike Keegan, Los Blancos haven’t made a single official offer yet to the Red Devils.

There have been initial talks, but reports of a £13 million bid, which was widely panned by pundits like the Times’ Oliver Kay, were apparently premature:

Keegan claims Real’s first bid will likely be in the region of £13 million, which will be nowhere near enough to secure his services. De Gea has a buyout clause of £145 million in his contract, but with one year left on his deal, the Spanish giants won’t go anywhere near that astronomical fee.

A likely compromise will be a fee somewhere near £25 million, which would be the second-highest fee ever paid for a stopper, per Infostrada Sports:

At this point in time, De Gea‘s future seems less clear than it was two months ago, when everyone assumed the Spain international would return to Madrid during the summer. Rumours of a £13 million bid almost insulted United fans, and unless Real are willing to pay significantly more for his services, it makes little sense to move the stopper for such a low fee.

His contract situation means the Mancunians are never going to receive more than £30 million for their star goalkeeper, but if Real’s fee isn’t to the club’s liking, it makes more sense to keep hold of De Gea for one more year, ride his skills to a strong finish in the Premier League and Europe and let him walk for free.

Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Johnson still believes De Gea will move to the Spanish capital during the summer, and while that remains the most likely scenario, it’s no longer as cut-and-dry as it was before the end of the season:

Juan Mata recently told Manchester Evening News‘ Rob Dawson he wants his compatriot at Old Trafford next season, although he also acknowledged he wants his team-mate “to be happy,” more than anything else.

This transfer saga will continue to go back-and-forth until one of the clubs involved finally makes some kind of official statement, either confirming De Gea‘s move to Spain or telling us he’ll be staying in the Premier League for another year.

Until then, expect both the British and Spanish press to continue digging.

 

Fabio Cannavaro Weighs in on Gonzalo Higuain Future

Italian football legend Fabio Cannavaro doesn’t believe Gonzalo Higuain will leave Napoli during the summer, telling Il Mattino (h/t Football Italia) the Argentina international told him he is happy at the San Paolo: “Why shouldn’t he stay? When we last spoke, he told me he was very happy at Napoli.”

The 27-year-old has been linked with a move to Old Trafford ever since the Partenopei lost out on Champions League qualification for next season, via the Daily Express‘ Charles Perrin.

The departure of manager Rafa Benitez also impacts the situation, with plenty of changes expected at the San Paolo during the summer. Amid all that turmoil, Higuain may believe it’s time for him to move on.

He may have been Napoli‘s top scorer in the past two seasons, but things haven’t gone smoothly for Higuain since leaving Real Madrid. He suffered through a disappointing 2014 World Cup with Argentina and has failed to crack the 20-goal mark in Serie A since completing his move.

Higuain is still a solid forward, but he no longer looks like the world-class striker that was such a popular name on the transfer market in 2013. La Liga blogger Rafael Hernandez even wondered why he made the Albiceleste team over Inter Milan‘s Mauro Icardi for the 2015 Copa America:

Despite the drop in popularity, Higuain is still an important figure for Napoli. He’s the club’s biggest star and primary scorer, and the Partenopei won’t be willing to part with him cheaply.

United don’t have to worry about their finances and have a clear need for a new striker, but Higuain might not be the answer. Even though there’s a shortage of world-class strikers on the open market these days, you have to assume that the Red Devils could do better than Higuain, who reportedly won’t be sold for anything less than his £72 million release clause, per Gazzetta dello Sport (via ITV).

All things considered, it’s hard to see anyone pay that kind of cash for Higuain, so Cannavaro‘s assessment of the situation may prove to be correct.

 

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