Manchester United are thought to have turned their attentions to Lazio midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic as an alternative to Frenkie de Jong as the Dutchman looks set to stay at Barcelona.
However, Milinkovic-Savic's signature is not exactly going to be easy to secure either, given United's opening bid of £42million for the Serbian is expected to fall £20m short of the price tag set by his club. This part of the deal was actually no such issue when it came to negotiating with Barcelona for De Jong.
The two clubs are reported to have agreed a fee of around £67m plus add-ons, but it was De Jong's desire to stay at the Camp Nou that has thrown such a spanner in the works. The potential move was complicated further by the fact that the 25-year-old is still owed £17m in deferred wages from the La Liga titans.
In what was a further twist, Barcelona allegedly asked De Jong if he would accept a pay decrease to boost his chances of remaining at the club. Despite this, the Netherlands international is still desperate to stay - forcing United to look elsewhere.
This is not the first time the Red Devils have registered an interest in Serie A star Milinkovic-Savic; he was also admired by Jose Mourinho when the Portuguese coach was at the helm at Old Trafford.
After eight seasons in Italy, the Daily Mail claims that the 27-year-old Lazio favourite feels his time for a dream move to the Premier League is running out and is therefore keen on making the move to Manchester.
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Regardless of what Milinkovic-Savic wants, Lazio are demanding around £20m more than what United are preparing to offer, as the Italians aim for around the £60m mark before they sanction his exit.
The Serbian has two years left to run on his Lazio contract, meaning this summer presents the last chance to recoup a large amount of cash for him before clubs catch wind of the fact he'll have just 12 months left in a year's time.
New manager Erik ten Hag's United transfer revolution has taken longer than anticipated to take shape, largely in part due to the amount of time and resources devoted to what appears to be an unsuccessful pursuit of ex-Ajax star De Jong.
In theory, United could use the funds generated by wantaway star Cristiano Ronaldo to bolster their bid for Milinkovic-Savic, but the club remain firm in their stance that the five-time Ballon d'Or winner is not for sale.
