Man Utd face £13.7m transfer misery as Atletico Madrid raise stakes for Spanish full-back sensation
Atletico Madrid are pushing to get a deal done for Racing Santander defender Jorge Salinas as they look to beat increasing interest from Manchester United, TEAMtalk can reveal.
We exclusively revealed in July that Salinas had emerged as a player on United’s radar, with the Old Trafford club stepping up their monitoring of the Spanish left-back.
United scouted the 19-year-old extensively during his season with Racing Santander, who secured promotion to LaLiga, but their interest was strengthened further by the opportunity to watch him at close quarters this summer.
Salinas spent three weeks in June and July representing Spain at the European Under-19 Championship in Wales, where United scouts were in attendance throughout.
His performances only reinforced the positive reports United had already compiled, with Salinas playing a key role as Spain went on to win the tournament.
United are now considering whether to make a firm move for the teenager, who is available for his €16million (£13.7m / $18.6m) release clause.
That clause increased significantly following Racing’s promotion, with Barcelona among the clubs who had previously looked at Salinas as a potential project signing. The Catalan club were put off when his buyout fee doubled.
Atletico pushing to beat Man Utd to Salinas deal
Atletico, however, are viewing Salinas differently.
We understand the Madrid club are keen for him to come into their first-team squad and have been accelerating talks over the last month after allowing Matteo Ruggeri to leave for Aston Villa.
Sources have confirmed Atletico are aware that United have been in contact with both Racing and Salinas’ representatives and are concerned the Premier League giants could make a formal approach.
That has prompted Atletico to push harder in an attempt to get ahead of the competition.
For United, Salinas remains one of several options as they continue to assess their left-back requirements.
As previously revealed, Newcastle’s Lewis Hall remains their preferred target and the Red Devils are pushing to try to make that deal happen, but Newcastle are not willing sellers.
That has forced United to look elsewhere and Salinas has emerged as an increasingly attractive alternative.
United also have RB Leipzig’s David Raum on their shortlist, while Club Brugge’s Joaquin Seys has been assessed. However, Belgian sources insist Seys is not available this summer.
The race for Salinas is therefore developing quickly, with Atletico keen to move first and United continuing to assess whether to trigger the €16million clause.
