June 24th 2023.
Thomas Tuchel is looking to take advantage of Manchester United's struggles to agree a fee with Chelsea for Mason Mount. Reports suggest that the ex-Chelsea manager wants Bayern Munich to make a rival move to acquire the 24-year-old midfielder.
United had a third and final offer for Mount rejected by Chelsea on Friday night. Their offer of £50 million plus £5 million in add-ons was not enough to satisfy the Blues' asking price of £65 million. United have now walked away from the negotiations, instead turning their focus to Brighton's Moises Caicedo.
United's hierarchy are unhappy with how the negotiations have gone and feel their offer was fair. For comparison, Mateo Kovacic, who also only has one year left on his contract, will be joining Man City in a deal worth £30 million, less than half of what Chelsea are asking for Mount.
This presents a chance for other clubs to swoop in, and it seems Bayern Munich are at the front of the queue, according to The Guardian. Mount might be running out of options if United walk away and Tuchel might have to convince the midfielder to move to Germany.
Bayern have also looked into deals for Kovacic and Declan Rice, making Tuchel call up the West Ham skipper in an attempt to convince him to move. However, Rice is settled in London and favours a move to Arsenal, while Bayern could not meet the £100 million asking price.
Chelsea might be more inclined to negotiate with Bayern rather than sell Mount to a Premier League rival. With the midfielder's contract situation, the Blues are keen to agree a deal before January when he can start negotiating a pre-contract with foreign clubs.
Chelsea are expected to have a busy few days and weeks ahead as they look to move on three players and bring in Kai Havertz. Manchester United, meanwhile, are looking at different targets as they move on from their pursuit of Mount.
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