Danjuma linked to Man Utd and Barca but Liverpool have nothing to fear

Robin Bairner

• 13 Dec 2021 21:16 GMT
• 5 min read

Villarreal winger Arnaut Danjuma has been a hit in La Liga in the first half of the season, with his form apparently attracting the interest of numerous clubs from around Europe.

The 24-year-old traded Bournemouth for Villarreal in the summer for around €23 million and has been an instant hit.

Danjuma has scored five goals and created two more in 12 La Liga appearances and has equally excelled in his debut Champions League season, netting four times in six matches as the Spaniards progressed to the last 16 of the competition.

Such performance have caught the eye of Liverpool, who were first associated with the Netherlands international before he left England for Spain. Needless to say, these links remain.

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On Monday, though, there was a fresh round of speculation led by Todo Fichajes.

The Spanish source stated that three new clubs are closely monitoring the exciting talent. This trio includes Manchester United, Barcelona and Lyon.

For at least two of these clubs, Danjuma is out of their ballpark at the moment.

Lyon are the most obvious outsider of the trio. Like Liverpool, they were linked with the Dutchman when he was still with Bournemouth, but unlike the Premier League side, they cannot hope to attract him presently.

Firstly, they do not have the type of money that Villarreal will demand while secondly they do not have the type of profile the winger would move to – they are mid-table in Ligue 1 and will struggle to qualify for Europe next season in any capacity.

The present links seem solely to be based on what came before.

Barcelona, meanwhile, have well-document financial problems that are set to leave them crippled economically for the foreseeable future. It would take some incredible accountancy gymnastics that do not seem possible for them to attract Danjuma.

Finally, where in the Manchester United squad is there room for him at present? In signing Jadon Sancho, the Red Devils have laid their wing plans for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, they also have Mason Greenwood, Marcus Rashford, Amad Diallo and more to accommodate in the long term.

Although United have no financial problems, there are other areas of the squad in much greater need of renovation, such as centre-back, right-back and central midfield.

Liverpool, then, still hold all the aces when it comes to Danjuma, whose signature is rightly a prized one.