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Arsenal and Manchester United to rival for Barcelona’s world-class man

By Nishant Narayanan

MILAN, ITALY - DECEMBER 10: (L-R) Clement Lenglet of FC Barcelona, Samuel Umtiti of FC Barcelona celebrate 1-2 during the UEFA Champions League match between Internazionale v FC Barcelona at the San Siro on December 10, 2019 in Milan Italy (Photo by Mattia Ozbot/Soccrates/Getty Images)
MILAN, ITALY - DECEMBER 10: (L-R) Clement Lenglet of FC Barcelona, Samuel Umtiti of FC Barcelona celebrate 1-2 during the UEFA Champions League match between Internazionale v FC Barcelona at the San Siro on December 10, 2019 in Milan Italy (Photo by Mattia Ozbot/Soccrates/Getty Images) /
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Premier League clubs, Manchester United and Arsenal, are preparing to compete for Barcelona’s French defender Samuel Umtiti.

International Business Times reports that Manchester United and Arsenal have learnt that Barcelona are willing to sell Samuel Umtiti during the summer transfer window, and with both the Premier League sides wanting to bring reinforcements to their defences, the French international proves to be a strong candidate.

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Umtiti has been struggling at Barca since his return from his knee injury, which saw his fellow club and country teammate, Clement Lenglet, claim the first-team spot alongside Gerrard Pique. The Spanish side’s attempts to sell the struggling star last summer had failed due to the defender’s ambitions to reclaim his spot at Camp Nou.

Despite this, the 26-year-old has only managed 16 appearances this season while Lenglet and Pique have managed 29 and 33 appearances respectively, across all competitions. The Catalan giants who are now desperate to raise funds for their massive summer transfer plan have decided to part ways with the Frenchman; with Umtiti reportedly accepting the fact that his fate lies elsewhere.

Meanwhile, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Manchester United have struggled a few times this season and could surely look to improve their defence. They had previously attempted to sign the former Lyon star during the January transfer market but it was to no avail.

Arsenal’s boss Mikel Arteta is also in the market for a defensive upgrade, with Umtiti proving to be a valuable prospect. Sport reports that Arsenal have the understanding that Samuel’s sale could be a golden opportunity to add an extraordinary talent to their squad.

Blaugrana had previously valued Samuel at around €60 million but they would have to reduce their fee in order to secure a deal in the coming summer.

Next. PSG name their price for much awaited Barcelona-Neymar reunion. dark

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