Manchester United are ready to accelerate their exciting summer transfer plans as they took a big step towards Champions League football next season, with Bournemouth forward Eli Kroupi Junior emerging as a target.
Man United and caretaker manager Michael Carrick will be well aware that finishing in the top five will be enough to see them return to the Champions League next term, for the first time since they were eliminated in the old format group stages in 2023.
The Red Devils are now on the verge of doing exactly that, with Saturday evening’s 1-0 win against sixth-placed Chelsea at Stamford Bridge giving them a 10-point cushion over the Blues with just five games to go.
Both Liam Rosenior’s side and seventh-placed Brentford are without a win in their last four games, with Chelsea losing all of theirs and Brentford drawing all of theirs, leaving United in pole position to secure a spot in Europe’s elite club competition next term.
Champions League football returning to Old Trafford will clearly give the club a huge financial boost, and it could potentially affect their summer transfer plans.
Junior Kroupi Interested in Joining Man United
According to Football Insider, Manchester United are one of a number of big Premier League clubs taking a serious look at Kroupi Junior ahead of the summer window.
United have been joined by the likes of Arsenal and Liverpool in the race for the 19-year-old ‘phenomenon’, who has had a standout season in the Premier League for Bournemouth.
The Cherries are currently level on points with sixth-placed Chelsea, and Kroupi Junior has been a big part of their unbeaten run since Antoine Semenyo departed for Manchester City in the January transfer window.
The £50-60m rated teenager has scored 10 goals in 28 top flight outings for the Cherries this term, including goals in both of their draws with United, while he scored in the win against Arsenal earlier this month too.
Bournemouth are said to be bracing themselves for offers for the Frenchman, who is said to be interested in a move to United or a bigger Premier League club.
Who Else are Man United Targeting in Attack?
While links with Kroupi Junior are emerging in recent days, the other attacking player United seem to be particularly keen on is Aston Villa star Morgan Rogers.
The versatile England international, who can play centrally or out wide, has been outstanding during his time at Villa Park and has potentially established himself as a starter for his country under Thomas Tuchel ahead of the World Cup this summer.
Carrick is reportedly pushing to bring him to Old Trafford should he get the job, having worked with the 23-year-old at Middlesbrough, while director of football Jason Wilcox also knows Rogers well given the attacker was at Manchester City when Wilcox was academy director.
If the reported fees for Kroupi Junior and Rogers (£90-100m) are accurate, then the Frenchman would be the cheaper player to bring in, but there is no doubting that Rogers has done it for longer at Premier League level and in Europe too.