Man Utd 'lodge £61m transfer bid' for Barcelona star Fermin Lopez

Manchester United will have to start thinking about the long-term successor for captain Bruno Fernandes and the Red Devils are reportedly weighing up a £61m bid for Barcelona's attacking midfielder Fermin Lopez

Manchester United are reportedly gearing up to bid £61million for Barcelona's highly-rated midfielder Femin Lopez.

Ruben Amorim is leading a revival at Old Trafford this summer after already snapping up two forwards in Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo, while a new striker is also on the agenda.

But United will need more creative spark in midfield too, with Bruno Fernandes only having two more years left on his current deal.

The Red Devils will have to start thinking about a long-term successor for Fernandes and Spanish outlet Sport have claimed United are about to test the waters over Lopez.

Lopez is one of the brightest talents to have come out of Barcelona's famed La Masia academy in recent years and he has gone on to play 88 times for his boyhood club after his breakthrough in the 2023-24 season.

The 22-year-old impressed with seven goals and eight assists in all competitions last season but will hungry for even more game time after making just 12 starts in La Liga, and another 16 off the bench.

Sport claim United are ready to double Lopez's salary at Old Trafford. He currently earns around £64,000-a-week at Barcelona.

Barcelona are open to selling Lopez but feel the player will be reluctant to leave the club having previously rejected teams in the Premier League.

It's claimed United spoke with Barca officials about the possibility of snapping up Lopez while the Spanish club were in negotiations to sign Marcus Rashford on loan.

United wanted Lopez to be included in the deal but didn't want to hold up Rashford's exit because they were eager to get his wages off their books for PSR reasons, the report goes on.

Rashford is one of five players United have been attempting to offload, knowing that they must secure more outgoings if they want to bring more players in amid their ongoing financial difficulties.

United have already spent £63.5m on Cunha and around £71m on Mbeumo, so they might need more space in their budget by selling the likes of Jadon Sancho, Alejandro Garnacho, Antony and Tyrell Malacia.