Manchester United have seemingly been handed a chance to land Borussia Monchengladbach striker Marcus Thuram, following an update on the Frenchman’s future at his current side.
What’s the latest on Thuram to Man United?
As per talkSPORT, the Red Devils – as well as Premier League rivals Arsenal and Chelsea – are said to be ‘on alert’ amid the news that the 25-year-old is set to depart the Bundesliga side on a free transfer this summer.
With just a matter of months left on his existing deal, the 6 foot 4 colossus – who is the son of World Cup winner, Lilian Thuram – appears to have turned down the chance to extend his contract with the German outfit.
As the report outlines, Gladbach had slapped an £8m asking price on the imposing forward during the January transfer window amid interest from the likes of United, albeit with Erik ten Hag’s side ultimately sealing the loan capture of towering Dutchman, Wout Weghorst.
Can Thuram be Man United’s striking solution?
With the Carabao Cup finalists having allowed Cristiano Ronaldo to depart back in November – and with Anthony Martial consistently shackled to the treatment table – Ten Hag has been without a true, out-and-out centre-forward for much of the campaign so far, hence the apparent need to strengthen this summer.
That lack of a genuine number nine has been somewhat eased, however, by the prolific form of the resurgent Marcus Rashford, with the England international looking almost “unstoppable” at present, according to his manager.
Having endured a frustrating stint at Old Trafford last term in which he scored just five goals in all competitions, the 25-year-old has been reborn in recent months, notably enjoying a particularly impressive hot streak since the return from World Cup duty.
The academy graduate has plundered ten goals in just his last 11 Premier League games to solidify his status as the Red Devils’ talisman, with his overall tally of 24 goals in all competitions ensuring that the £200k-per-week man has already hit career-best figures for a single season.
The fear will be, however, that should those goals dry up the top-four hopefuls may well begin to struggle, with it no doubt wise to try and ease Rashford’s goalscoring burden by bringing in a new striking asset ahead of next season.
In Thuram, Ten Hag would be able to find another figure who is enjoying a real breakthrough campaign to date, with the nine-cap menace having scored 14 goals and provided four assists in 22 games across all fronts, including 11 goals in just 20 league games.
Also capable of playing off the left flank if required, like Rashford, the Parma-born speedster only recently scored what proved to be the winning goal in the 3-2 victory over Bavarian giants Bayern Munich, having previously also netted against Julian Nagelsmann’s side earlier this season.
Lauded as a “physical monster” by his former Sochaux boss Herve Renard in the past, Thuram would not only provide the benefit of his impressive stature in attack, but also his innate running power, as he ranks in the top 11% among his European peers for progressive carries, as well as in the top 9% for successful take-ons per 90.
Having now emerged as a reliable goalscoring asset – as he ranks in the top 12% for non-penalty goals – the £54k-per-week marksman could well help Rashford by shouldering the responsibility in front of goal next season at the Theatre of Dreams.