Manchester United Ready to Pounce on Wolves Forward Matheus Cunha as Arsenal Also Show Interest
Manchester United are preparing to rival Arsenal for the signing of Wolves forward Matheus Cunha in the summer transfer window, according to reports. The 25-year-old Brazilian international has already hinted that he will leave Wolves in the summer to take “the next step” in his career.
Cunha has been a bright spot in a troubled season for Wolves, scoring 13 goals and providing four assists in the Premier League. The former Atlético Madrid player was linked with a move to Arsenal in January, but instead signed a new deal through to 2029 at Molineux. However, the contract extension included a release clause of around £62.5m, making him a attainable target for top clubs.
According to ESPN’s sources, Manchester United have joined the list of interested clubs, with both the Red Devils and Arsenal desperate for reinforcements up front. Cunha’s impressive form has caught the attention of top clubs, with the Brazil international scoring 23 goals and setting up nine in his last 16 months.
ESPN’s Dale Johnson has analysed Cunha’s game, saying: “Matheus Cunha was something of an enigma when arriving at Wolves two years ago… He’s already netted 13 times in this campaign, one more than his tally for 2023-24. So on those numbers alone, it’s easy to see why the bigger clubs have begun to sit up and take notice.”
Cunha’s discipline has been a concern, however, with the forward escaping with just a two-match ban for snatching the glasses off the face of a member of the Ipswich staff in December, and then being banned for four games after losing his cool when sent off at the end of the FA Cup defeat at Bournemouth last month.
In other transfer news, Bayern Munich are reportedly close to agreeing a contract extension with Leroy Sané, but may look to replace Kingsley Coman with Marseille’s Luis Henrique. ESPN’s sources also report that Paris Saint-Germain could make a renewed bid to sign Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford in the summer.
Rashford, who is currently on loan at Aston Villa until the end of the season, was a target for PSG in May 2022 but that interest ended when Leonardo left the role as sporting director. Now, as the 27-year-old heads to Paris on Wednesday with Villa in the UEFA Champions League, PSG could rekindle their interest. Villa have an option to make the move permanent for £40m, but it will be an expensive package with the player’s £350,000-a-week salary.
Manchester City are also planning for the future, with the Citizens considering Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White and Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz as potential replacements for outgoing attacking midfielder Kevin De Bruyne. According to ESPN, transfers won’t be a priority until new director of football Hugo Viana is fully in his role.
AC Milan, meanwhile, are expected to make big changes if they don’t qualify for the UEFA Champions League, with Theo Hernández and Fikayo Tomori both likely to depart. Yunus Musah, Samuel Chukwueze, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, and Emerson Royal are also expected to leave, while I Rossoneri would be willing to listen to interesting offers for Malick Thiaw, Mike Maignan, and Rafael Leão.
In other news, Barcelona have not given up hope of signing Nico Williams from Athletic Club, although interest from the Premier League, most notably Arsenal, has made a deal more difficult. Liverpool winger Luis Diaz may be a more realistic target for the Catalan club.
Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim wants a new centre-back and could look to be reunited with Sporting CP star Gonçalo Inacio. While formal talks have not commenced due to the uncertainty surrounding the Red Devils’ sporting and financial position, an initial approach will reportedly be made in the coming weeks.
Several other players are also attracting interest from top clubs, including Brentford goalkeeper Mark Flekken, who is being considered by Bayer Leverkusen, and Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder Carlos Baleba, who is a target for Liverpool.
Aston Villa will offer Boubacar Kamara a contract “worthy of a top five European club” amid interest from Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, and Manchester City. Tottenham have no plans to sign Timo Werner on a permanent basis from RB Leipzig when his loan expires in the summer, while Juventus have identified Ipswich Town left-back Leif Davis as a possible replacement for Andrea Cambiaso.
Fiorentina are set to trigger the additional year in David de Gea’s contract, while Jamie Gittens isn’t satisfied with his situation at Borussia Dortmund and has made the club aware that he wants to leave in the summer. Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey sees a move to Barcelona as his No. 1 priority in the summer.
Finally, AC Milan have joined Barcelona in showing an interest in Fiorentina right-back Dodo, while Bayern Munich and Ajax have sent scouts to watch 17-year-old Manchester City attacking midfielder Divine Mukasa. Liverpool are open to offers for winger Ben Doak, and Everton, Roma, and West Ham United are all interested in Sunderland midfielder Dan Neil.
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