Manchester United 'hold transfer talks' with agent of 34-year-old Newcastle flop

Manchester United’s bid to sign cut-price players this summer has reportedly begun by targeting former Newcastle striker Joselu. The 34-year-old, currently on loan at Real Madrid from Espanyol, scored for the Spanish giants on Saturday as they beat Cadiz 3-0. Real’s status as La Liga champions was later confirmed by Barcelona losing to Girona.

He’ll still have a year left on his contract with his parent club this summer, while a permanent deal at the Bernabeu may rest on whether or not Kylian Mbappe signs for Real in the summer. But according to Relevo reporter Matteo Moretto, United have now made a move to sign him.

They’ve reported that the Premier League club have already held talks with the agent of the 34-year-old. That’s despite the player’s primary intention seemingly being to stay where he is and fight for his place under Carlo Ancelotti.

Despite fresh investment following the minority takeover of Sir Jim Ratcliffe, United are set to operate on a restricted budget in the next transfer window in order not to fall foul of Premier League profit and sustainability rules. Failure to again qualify for the Champions League for the 2024/25 campaign has signified a further financial blow.

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The Red Devils are also in need of fresh forward options, with Anthony Martial set to leave this summer when his contract expires. The future of Marcus Rashford also remains the subject of speculation after being lined with a big-money switch to PSG.

Should a move to Old Trafford for Joselu materialise, it’s unlikely to come courtesy of a significant transfer fee. It would be viewed with scepticism in some quarters though given the forward's age and previous stints in England with Newcastle and Stoke.

Ahead of the 2015/15 season, he joined the Potters from Hannover 96 in a £5.75million deal. But he scored just four times in his debut campaign, with his then-manager Mark Hughes publicly saying the player had struggled to adapt to the Premier League, before duly shipping him out to Deportivo La Corona on a season-long loan.

And following that year he signed for Newcastle for £5million. But another barren two seasons followed, scoring just seven times in 52 appearances before he again returned to Spain to join Alaves.

But he propelled himself back into the shop window last summer, coming on as a sub to score a late winner for Spain in the Nations League semi-final win over Italy. He also came on in the final and converted from 12 yards as his side beat Croatia in a penalty shootout.