Manchester United Transfer News: Nicolas Otamendi Fee Named, Latest Rumours

Valencia will wait for Manchester United to meet Nicolas Otamendi's £35 million valuation despite the centre-back's agent claiming the Argentine wants to leave, according to Paul Brown of the Daily Star.

Brown reports that United will need to meet Otamendi's buyout clause because the Spanish club won't make him available for "a penny less." It is suggested the 27-year-old is Louis van Gaal's "top defensive target" ahead of an expensive summer for the Red Devils.

Van Gaal recently admitted he is looking to spend big on quality, as reported by David Anderson of the Mirror:

"

The board of Manchester United shall say now we have to battle for the championship. The board has hired me to win the title and my CV says that.

It’s a fantastic challenge, but it depends on how we can purchase very good players and how we can improve our balance in our selection. When you see against Arsenal what I have to do to change, I have to put players in other positions that I never play and that was a pity because the balance in our play was not good. 

We need two players in every position and then they can perform more easily.

"

Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

Otamendi posted a terrific season en route to qualifying for the Champions League with Valencia. He has developed into one of the continent's best central defenders, a physical, aerially dominant force who can contribute in attacking situations.

Eugenio Lopez, Otamendi's agent, recently confirmed the player told Valencia he "will do everything possible" to leave. It is suggested the defender made this known two months ago, per Brown.

Valencia remain unmoved, however. Executive president Amadeo Salvo is waiting for Otamendi to make his intentions clear with an official request, and even then, his price won't be altered, as reported by Brown.

"Otamendi is a Valencia player and if he wants to leave I wait for him to tell us formally," said Salvo. "If his agent has an offer I only warn him that the price is €50m (£35m) and that we will decide the form of payment." The player's quality can be seen below:

Otamendi is the kind of authoritative figure United need at the back. His natural aggression would sit well alongside the improving Chris Smalling, who received a show of faith from Van Gaal when he was named vice-captain for United's recent draw with Arsenal. Smalling is becoming more confident on the ball, and with Otamendi sitting alongside him, he could find more opportunities to step up.

Ian Ladyman of MailOnline suggests United have also "expressed interest" in Barcelona right-back Dani Alves, who is available for free this summer.

It is suggested Van Gaal believes Alves could prove to be "a reliable and valuable squad player" despite the hefty wages needed to secure his signature.

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

Alves recently confirmed he wishes to remain at the Camp Nou but will move on if the club continues to make him feel undervalued, per Ladyman: "I would like to stay here but not at any price. Not only in terms of money but in terms of respect. If I'm not shown that respect, I'll go to another club."

The Brazilian full-back has won every trophy worth winning with Barca and would bring exciting attacking prowess to Old Trafford. B/R UK's Alex Dimond recently looked at the United players who could make way for players such as Otamendi and Alves:

Van Gaal completed his first-year objective of returning United to the Champions League, but improvements throughout the entire squad are needed. His side often managed to scrape results without playing particularly well, something that will be exploited in Europe's elite competition.

Both Otamendi and Alves would be fantastic captures, the kind of winners who can form a solid backbone for United.

We can expect Van Gaal to spend handsomely and challenge for a handful of world-class signatures as United prepare to push Chelsea for next season's Premier League title.