It seems like Manchester United beat Real Madrid in a player-signing race! French defensive prodigy, Leny Yoro is all set to travel to England to undergo a medical and finalise personal terms as Manchester United, reports claim. The 18-year-old Lille centre-back was a priority target for La Liga champions Real Madrid. The Los Blancos had assured Yoro of their interest in bringing him on board, demanding patience for the time being.
However, Manchester United have managed to convince the teenage defender to come to Old Trafford instead to join forces with Erik Ten Hag. Lille and United had reached an initial € 62 million (£52m; $67.9m) agreement last week for Yoro, the New York Times said in a report. If Yoro agrees to personal terms and accepts the offer, he will be in the Premier League by the season's beginning, the report added.
As his contract expires in June 2025, Lille was also wanted to seal the deal as soon as possible so that they can avoid losing him as a free agent, the NYT report added. Real Madrid's delay in showing any clear sign of its willingness to pay Lille's asking price for Yoro is also said to be the reason for the youngster's change of mind. United had no problem quickly agreeing to the Ligue 1 team's demand as they look to reinforce their depleted backline. Matthijs de Ligt of Bayern Munich and Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite are also on the radar of the former Premier League champions.
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Earlier, Manchester United confirmed the departure of Anthony Martial, Raphael Varane and Brandon Williams, alongside reserve players Charlie McNeill, Marcus Lawrence and Kie Plumley heading into the summer. They are hellbent on finding young recruits so that a long-time revival project can be in place to become the powerhouse they once were.
Leny Yoro was being tracked as part of Real Madrid's "long-term operation", news reports had earlier said. His fellow countryman Eduardo Camavinga (21), Turkey's Arda Guler (19), and Brazil's Endrick (17) are some of the players who arrived at Bernabue recently as part of the project. 23-year-old Canadian left-back Alphonso Davies is also expected to join Real from Bayern Munich.