Man Utd suffer blow in pursuit of Hojlund as Atalanta hold out for £86m fee

Manchester United have suffered a blow in their pursuit of Rasmus Hojlund, with Atalanta stating they will also sell the striker for their £86m asking price.

United have already laid out £112m in transfer fees after securing deals for Chelsea's Mason Mount and Andre Onana from Inter Milan.

A new striker remains a high priority for Erik ten Hag, and Hojlund has been a top target for the United boss, however, there restrictions on what they can spend.

United had hoped to secure a deal for the young Danish striker for around £45m, but Atalanta see that as a derogatory price and are sticking by their valuation of the player - as confirmed by coach Gian Piero Gasperini.

'I don't know, I honestly don't know,' the Atalanta boss told reporters when asked about an update on the 20-year-old's future.

'The market is unpredictable... I hope for €100m for Atalanta.

There are very strong players who are struggling to find a place and young players who have been been targeted.

As one of the young players, Hojlund is among the best, if not the best.'

Tan Hag had earmarked a proven striker to add to United's ranks this season, along with a young striker that the club could develop.

The club remain keen on Harry Kane but cannot meet Tottenham's £120m asking price for the player. They have also been priced out of a move for Napoli's Victor Osimhen.

They also feel there are risks with other targets such as Eintracht Frankfurt's Randal Kolo Muani, Benfica's Goncalo Ramos and Dusan Vlahovic of Juventus.

It means Hojlund has become the club's front-runner and although they see huge potential in the Danish striker, Atalanta's asking price could be a real stumbling block in the deal.

Hojlund moved to Atalanta in 2022 and scored 10 goals in 34 games for the club last season.

The forward also has six goals in his first six games for the Danish national side, including scoring a hat-trick against Finland in March's Euro 2024 qualifier.