MANCHESTER UNITED have lined up an ambitious transfer swoop for Barcelona defender Ronald Araujo.
The Red Devils are on the hunt to replace Raphael Varane, who has fallen down the pecking order at Old Trafford and is set to be sold at the end of the term.
Varane, 29, has been frozen out by Erik ten Hag despite being one of United’s highest earners on a wage of around £340,000 per week.
The Frenchman has played just 18 minutes in the Red Devils’ last eight league games.
And he was left out of Man Utd’s winning squad against Chelsea on Wednesday night.
Despite Araujo rejecting an offer to move to Old Trafford in 2022 to sign a new contract at Camp Nou, United are still interested in the defender, according to Spanish outlet Sport.
READ MORE MAN UTD NEWS
Barca got a bargain when they snapped up the 24-year-old from Boston Rivers in 2018 for a modest fee of £1.4million.
The Blaugrana’s third captain Araujo has since made 126 appearances at the club and helped his side win a La Liga title and Copa del Rey.
But for United to sign the centre-back they will have to pay a huge price as his new contract has a staggering £856million buyout clause that runs until 2026.
And the Uruguayan has vowed to stay at the club and “mark an era as one of the greatest defenders in history”.
Most read in Football
FREE BETS – BEST BETTING OFFERS & NEW CUSTOMER BONUSES
He even told his agents last season “not to listen to anyone’s” offer so he could accept Barca’s contract.
The centre-back has played only more than one game than Varane but has been on the pitch for nearly double the amount of time.
Defensively Araujo has outshined Varane picking up and winning more tackles for his side.
Singing from Real Madrid in 2021 the Frenchman was expected to be a key star at United in their quest to win the league title again.
And last term he formed a decent partnership with Lisandro Martinez.
Last month, Ten Hag denied that he and Varane had fallen out after selecting him from the start in just four league games this term.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
