Manchester United and Liverpool will reportedly go head-to-head in a battle to sign Paris Saint-Germain’s Brazilian winger Lucas Moura.

The Daily Telegraph claimed the two longstanding rivals are keen on the 23-year-old, who is rated as one of the most exciting young players in world football. In the piece it’s noted that the French champions appear to be “prepared to listen to offers” and a fee of £22 million may be enough to prise him away from Parc des Princes.

For United, it’d be quite a coup. As we can see here, Lucas is a player who is enthralling to watch when he’s at his very best:

We’ve seen his best in flashes for PSG this season. The Brazil international has become a much more regular feature in the first team in the French capital, starting 13 of their 19 league matches to this point. With four goals and two assists, Lucas has been a major positive for the Parisians too.

So it makes it difficult to see him potentially leaving the club any time soon, especially for such a meagre fee. As noted by Joe Wright of Goal, PSG parted with a massive €35 million to sign Lucas in 2012, staving off interest from the Red Devils and Inter Milan to bring him to the Parc des Princes. 

Given the steady improvements made by the player during his time in Ligue 1, you suspect if PSG were to entertain the possibility of a sale, they’d only do so to earn a profit.

United could certainly do with a player of his guile. As noted here by Stats Zone, for all their possession in matches, they lack a creative edge:

Moura would bring that to the table, but any hopes of a deal seem a long way off at this point. Therefore, manager Louis van Gaal should look to his own wingers like Jesse Lingard and Memphis Depay to showcase that kind of ingenuity if the Red Devils are to be a major threat in front of goal again.

 

Ayoze Perez Happy at Newcastle

Newcastle United forward Ayoze Perez has confirmed there is genuine interest in him from Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur, but for now he’s happy where he is.

“There is truth in the talk about interest in me,” the 22-year-old told Radio Club Tenerife (h/t Harry Slavin of the Daily Mail). “It’s rewarding for me. There is much truth in the interest from Tottenham and Man United, but my place is at Newcastle.” 

Since joining the Magpies in the summer of 2014, Perez has impressed in bursts. He’s a player who can alter the course of a match with one moment of quality and although he’s been in and out of the Newcastle team this season, the striker seems to have developed a penchant for making decisive contributions.

He operates in a position United are currently short of depth in, striker. As noted here by Copa90, captain and star forward Wayne Rooney has really struggled in front of goal as of late:

Perez looks like a player who is more at home in a withdrawn role, though, even if he has played at the point of the attack for Newcastle at times.

What United need is a player who can lead the line, offer support to Rooney and Anthony Martial, and when chances do come in the box, have the predatory instincts to take them.

That’s not Perez’s game and it’s encouraging to hear him say his future is likely to be at St. James’ Park.

He still has plenty of developing to do before he thinks about moving on to a club like United or Spurs.

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