Manchester United Transfer News: Cesc Fabregas Targeted, Top Red Devils Rumours

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is reportedly ready to swoop should Chelsea decide to move Cesc Fabregas on this summer. 

That’s according to Darren Lewis of the Daily Mirror, who has stated the playmaker’s future at Stamford Bridge is in doubt, with new manager Antonio Conte seeking a stronger midfield. 

The Spain international is said to have a “good relationship” with Mourinho, having been signed by the Portuguese manager for the Blues from Barcelona.

Indeed, when Chelsea decided to part company with their former boss in December after an appalling start to the season, Fabregas was the first player from the club to express his disappointment:

Conte is said to be chasing midfield men such as N’Golo Kante from Leicester City and AS Roma’s Radja Nainggolan as he seeks to shore up the soft underbelly Chelsea showed at times last term.

It was a quality Fabregas contributed to at times. The former Arsenal midfielder forged a strong midfield with Nemanja Matic in the 2014-15 campaign, when the Blues strolled to the Premier League title. The same dynamic wasn’t prevalent last term, though, with the Spaniard's lack of defensive discipline exposed.

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Mourinho would often use the 29-year-old in a more advanced position in big games as a result, and as these numbers from Squawka Football show, he’s been a creative force with the Blues:

Fabregas isn’t a stereotypical Mourinho player. When it comes to the midfield, the illustrious coach tends to recruit footballers who can be inventive on the ball and industrious off it. The Spaniard, with his superb passing and wonderful technical quality, excels in the former but fails in the latter.

Mourinho could look to use Fabregas in the No. 10 spot again, although the Red Devils already have Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Wayne Rooney, Ander Herrera and Zlatan Ibrahimovic who can fulfil that role. It means that he’d be an indulgence rather than a necessity for United at this moment in time.

Moussa Sissoko Considered

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According to Le 10 Sport (h/t James Gray of the Daily Express), Manchester United will move for Newcastle United man Moussa Sissoko should they fail to land Paul Pogba this summer.

As noted by Gray, it’s suggested in the report that the Red Devils are hoping to secure the Juventus superstar in what would be a big-money move, but they’ve made a contingency plan in Sissoko.

Despite enduring a poor campaign with the Magpies in 2015-16, the midfielder impressed at the 2016 UEFA European Championship for France, especially in the final loss to Portugal.

Sky Sports stated earlier this week any club seeking to sign the 26-year-old will have to pay a whopping £35 million for his services.

As BBC Sport’s Phil McNulty noted during the final, his display in the showpiece was the exception rather than the rule:

If the right kind of manager were in charge of the France international, he could be a major force.

Sissoko has all the attributes to be an elite midfielder, as he's capable of carrying the ball at pace, creating chances and dribbling past opponents. But it’s rare to see him channel all of these qualities like he did in the final.

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Indeed, while France boss Didier Deschamps relied on his energy on the right flank during the tournament, there were times last term when Sissoko’s attitude was undesirable.

As Sport Witness noted here, when Newcastle struggled, he practically threw in the towel:

Perhaps with a better set of players alongside him—as is the case with France—we’d see a more consistent output from Sissoko. Still, it’s difficult to see a taskmaster like Mourinho being enamoured by sporadic showings.

While the Red Devils have the financial clout to part with that kind of money, £35 million would be far too much to shell out for a footballer who so often flatters to deceive.