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Manchester United are reportedly confident of beating Real Madrid for the signing of Bayern Munich star David Alaba in January. The Austria international is set to leave the Allianz Arena in the New Year, with his current contract ending. And a new challenge in the Premier League could now be lurking.
United have struggled at the rear this season, with Victor Lindelof and Harry Maguire battling for consistency.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who was unable to sign Dayot Upamecano during the summer transfer window, knows that defensive reinforcements are of the utmost importance.
And, according to the Daily Star, United are now confident of signing Alaba in the New Year.
They are said to be willing to pay the 28-year-old a whopping £ 12 million a year to entice him to choose to move to Old Trafford.
Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane is also eager to sign the Bayern star, especially with Sergio Ramos’ long-term future at the Bernabéu in the air.
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Bayern boss Karl-Heinz Rummenigge admitted that he is not sure about keeping the Austrian, saying: “Bayern did everything they could to try to reach an agreement.
“We had a lot of conversations, but we wanted answers from him by the end of October. This did not happen and I do not know if we will return to negotiations.
“What I want to make clear is that our offer showed exactly how much we value him, but he did not accept it.”
On Madrid specifically, he added: “I don’t know anything about the Real Madrid rumors.
“You are free to talk to whoever you want from January 1st.”
United have signed four players from the Bundesliga in recent years, but none have lived up to expectations.
Owen Hargreaves arrived in the summer of 2007, but spent most of his time with the Red Devils injured, much to the frustration of Sir Alex Ferguson.
Ferguson pushed for the signing of Shinji Kagawa in 2012, but the Japanese international lasted just two years before being relieved by Louis van Gaal.
Van Gaal thought Bastian Schweinsteiger would roll back the years the veteran came from Bayern in 2015, but he too was happy to cheat.
And José Mourinho let Henrikh Mkhitaryan loose after just 18 months together, with the Armenian international previously landing from Borussia Dortmund in 2016.
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