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Manchester United could be faced with an unexpected obstacle in their pursuit of Inter goalkeeper Andre Onana in the form of their Premier League rivals, Tottenham Hotspur.
Reports in Italy claim that Guglielmo Vicario, Spurs’ reported goalkeeping target, is also Inter’s choice to replace a potentially departing Andre Onana.
Spurs are on the lookout for a new goalkeeper following Hugo Lloris’ departure and a deal for David Raya falling through.
They turned their attention to Empoli’s highly-rated player, Vicario, with a potential deal reported to be close.
It provides a headache for United, who are seeking to complete a deal to sign Andre Onana from Inter Milan following as David de Gea’s future becomes increasingly uncertain.
Further reports say that Inter like Vicario “a lot”, but as United have dithered in their attempts to sign Onana, Spurs have stolen a march and taken the lead of signing Nerazzurri’s first-choice target instead.
It continues a running theme for the Red Devils in the current transfer window. A lack of proactiveness has seen them lose priority target Kim Min-Jae to Bayern Munich, for whom a bid was never made.
Similarly, Ajax man Jurrien Timber, another long-term target of the club, looks close to moving to Arsenal. A bid never went in for him either.
In attack, they’ve been priced out of a move for Harry Kane and are now reportedly relying on the striker forcing a move instead. The chase for Rasmus Hojlund of Atalanta has been similarly frustrating.
The Vicario situation, then, comes as unnecessary extra stress that the club has bought upon themselves due to their slow activity.
Inter will undoubtedly be more reticent to release Onana for a sensible fee now that their first-choice replacement for him looks to be off the market.
Combine that with United’s restrictive transfer budget for the season, the stage could be set for another long transfer saga, the likes of which the club is increasingly making a habit of dragging itself into.
