Man Utd given big transfer boost by Khephren Thuram

Carlo Garganese

24 Jun 2024 14:30 BST
3 min read

Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Sir Dave Brailsford, Khephren Thuram, Man Utd — © IMAGO

Juventus’ pursuit of Khephren Thuram is a big boost to Man Utd’s hopes of signing Adrien Rabiot this summer.

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The Bianconeri are currently in talks with Nice over signing Thuram, who is the brother of Inter star Marcus and son of France legend Lilian.

Gazzetta dello Sport reports on Monday that midfielder Khephren has given the green light to join Juventus.

Juventus now need to agree a transfer fee with Nice, with a deal for around €18-20 million possible. Juve could offer a player in part exchange like Moise Kean or Arkadiusz Milik.

The Bianconeri’s pursuit of Thuram suggests that they have accepted Rabiot will leave the club on a free transfer.

Rabiot to leave Juventus on free transfer?

Rabiot’s contract at Juventus expires at the end of the month.

It had appeared in recent weeks as if Rabiot was edging closer to a new two-year contract with Juventus, despite heavy interest from Man Utd.

However, negotiations failed to make significant headway, and it now seems as if Juventus have given up in order to concentrate on Thuram, who would be a direct replacement for Rabiot.

This news of Thuram will come as a boost to Man Utd, who have been in the lead once again to sign Rabiot on a free transfer this summer.

Rabiot to Man Utd finally?

This is the second year in a row that Rabiot’s contract has been due to expire, with Rabiot extending his deal just days before it was set to run out at the end of June last year.

United had been in discussions with Veronique Rabiot last summer about signing Rabiot.

The chances of Rabiot staying at Juventus appeared to be slim as the days ticked down to his June 30 contract expiry.

But the midfielder chose to stay in the end.

It was the second time in a year that he had rejected United.

It is widely understood that Juventus and Man Utd agreed on a transfer fee worth €18m plus €6m in add-ons in the summer of 2022.

But United were unable to agree personal terms with Rabiot, with Veronique again blamed for excessive demands. United then signed Casemiro instead.

United have now been working on a third attempt to sign Rabiot this summer.

There is also interest from other European clubs such as Liverpool and Real Madrid.

Rabiot, 29, joined Juventus on a free transfer from PSG in 2019. He has made over 200 appearances for the club, winning one Scudetto.