CHELSEA and Manchester United have suffered a blow in their pursuit of Weston McKennie after Juventus were reportedly contacted by Bournemouth.
The Cherries, who face off against United tonight, are battling to avoid relegation from the Premier League.
And now with their new owners backing, including Hollywood actor Michael B. Jordan, the club have launched an audacious bid to sign the American midfielder.
According to Calciomercato, Juventus want to keep French World Cup star Adrien Rabiot at the club until the end of the season, and prefer to lose McKennie instead.
The report suggests Bournemouth have made “the most concrete steps” regarding a transfer for the 24-year-old.
Juventus want to sell McKennie for between £31m and £35million.
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And following Bournemouth’s initial contact, they will reportedly follow it up with a bid in the next few days, but McKennie’s interest in the move is unknown.
United tracked McKennie in the summer after negotiations to sign Rabiot collapsed.
Last month it was reported McKennie was wanted by clubs including Chelsea, Tottenham and Borussia Dortmund.
The Bundesliga outfit do reportedly remain keen, but they are second in the race to Bournemouth.
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McKennie’s sale would allow them to fund a move for Real Valladolid right-back Iván Fresneda.
Bournemouth’s takeover was completed last month and was worth £120m.
The leader of the bid, Bill Foley, is said to be worth £1.2b.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk