The agent of Russian striker Fedor Smolov claims 'everything was ready' to bring the striker to Manchester United after moves for Paulo Dybala and Antoinne Griezmann fell through, but the club opted to sign Alexis Sanchez instead.
United signed Sanchez in January 2018 in a swap deal that saw Henrikh Mkhitaryan move to Arsenal. Sanchez failed to impress at Old Trafford and is currently on loan at Inter Milan, where he is out injured.
Now, it has been claimed that United were interested in signing Dybala or Griezmann during that transfer window, with Sanchez a third choice.
German Tkachenko, who represents striker Smolov, was speaking about the deal as reported by Championat . He claims his client was lined up as an alternative to Sanchez after moves for Dybala and Griezmann did not materialise.
Smolov, who was then at Krasnodar before moving to Lokomotiv Moscow, was the 'surprise' option instead of Sanchez, Tkachenko claims. Smolov impressed for Russia at last summer's World Cup.
“When we were dealing with the transfer, Manchester United emerged as a surprise option and their interest was real," the agent said.
“They were looking for a striker and they had two main targets in Paulo Dybala and Antoine Griezmann. They were seeing us as an alternative option.
“When it was clear both players wouldn't be joining them, we brought him onto the scene. We discussed the wages, agency fees, advertising and other details. Everything was ready but United took Alexis and our move fell through.”