Manchester United have held talks with former Chelsea striker Timo Werner but RB Leipzig’s sporting director Rouven Schroder is not expecting to lose the Germany international to the Premier League.
Earlier this week, Fabrizio Romano went public with the three forwards Manchester United have held talks with ahead of the January transfer window. Three forwards of varying quality, varying suitability, and varying form.
“They have spoken to representatives for (Donyell) Malen, (Timo) Werner (and Serhou) Guirassy,” Romano explains. “Many, many players are on the list for Manchester United for a striker.”
But can we now reduce that three-man shortlist by 33 per cent?
Manchester United have held Timo Werner talks
Rouven Schroder tells BILD that – despite his lack of game time over the last few months – there are currently no plans to let Werner pursue a return to England, and a reunion with his former Chelsea team-mate Mason Mount at Old Trafford.
“I assume that he (Werner) will play the second half of the season with us,” Schroder explains. “We know what he is capable of doing, he has to get it back on the pitch.”
Werner, who United looked at prior to his Chelsea departure in 2022, has scored only twice in the Bundesliga this season. He has been kept on the bench by the form of another Red Devils-linked forward in Lois Openda.
Leipzig coach Marco Rose took a stance similar to that of Schroder recently, insisting that Werner will be afforded the ‘opportunity’ to force his way back into the starting XI.
“The opportunity is always there (for Werner). Every player has the task of proving themselves, accepting their situation and classifying it correctly,” former Borussia Dortmund boss Rose told Sky Germany.
“In the end, it’s the performance that counts. Each player must accept this competition (for his place). Now it’s about deciding; ‘Do I accept my situation and fight? Or am I changing (clubs)?’
“When Timo trains, he is very hard working. Nevertheless, his situation is not easy.”
United also like Serhou Guirassy and Donyell Malen
Of the three aforementioned frontmen, Guirassy feels the most ‘gettable’ for Man United. The Frenchman, who scored his 19th of a stunning season in midweek, has a £15 million release clause in his Stuttgart contract.
Malen, in contrast, would likely have been an option to bring in as part of a swap deal involving Jadon Sancho. Dortmund director Sebastien Kehl, however, has already suggested that a January exchange is not on the cards.
from United In Focus https://ift.tt/VpaTxI7