Ten Hag loves him: Man Utd now 'pressing' to sign transfer listed Italian after agent meeting

Manchester United are ‘pressing’ to sign Inter Milan defender Alessandro Bastoni this summer.

Bastoni is a left-footed centre-back who joined in 2017 from Atalanta in a deal worth just shy of £28m when he was valued at just £1.35m.

Inter’s gamble on the 23-year-old has since paid off, though, with Bastoni now valued at a career-high £54m by Transfermarkt. He has made 117 appearances for Inter, 43 of which have come during the current campaign.

The Italy international will be entering the final two years of his contract in the summer, but it looks as if he could be on the way out of Italy over the coming months.

Sports Witness relayed an update from FcInter1908 regarding Bastoni on Thursday. They claim that Erik ten Hag is personally an ‘admirer’ of the player, with United ‘pressing’ to secure his services.

The report says that Bastoni’s agent recently met with Inter chiefs, where it was decided they could ‘sacrifice’ the defender over the summer, adding that United could ‘carry out a deal’ after he was made available for transfer.

United have been linked with a number of centre-backs in recent weeks including Jurrien Timber, Sven Botman, Kalidou Koulibaly and Goncalo Inacio.

Bastoni is now the latest, and it appears to show that Ten Hag knows a defensive overhaul is required at Old Trafford. He seems to pride himself on making his team hard to beat, with his Ajax side conceding just 19 goals in the Eredivisie in 2021/22.

The Red Devils have already let in 57 in 37 games, more than the likes of Burnley and Brentford, so a few centre-backs could be handy to replace the likes of Eric Bailly and Phil Jones, who look set to leave.

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