Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho is keen to slash the club’s wage bill to improve his side’s chances of signing his top targets this summer, Metro.co.uk can reveal. United have the highest wage bill in the Premier League and spent over £263m on player salaries in 2017. Wages increased by 13% when the squad triggered contractual bonuses for winning the Europa League and re-establishing themselves in the Champions League in the 2016/17 campaign. Mourinho is set to be handed roughly £150million once again this summer to invest in his squad but the money generated from player sales and the space their departures would create on the wage bill could prove vital. Matteo Darmian and Daley Blind are both surplus to requirements at Old Trafford and their £85,000-a-week wages would free up around £9m-a-year on the club’s annual wage bill should they leave.
Juventus are keen on Darmian and though they’re unwilling to meet United’s £15m valuation the Italian is increasingly likely to leave Old Trafford this summer. Roma were interested in signing Blind last summer and Emerson Palmieri’s move to Chelsea in January has only increased the Series A giants’ need for reinforcements.
Luke Shaw has another year to run on his deal but his £130,000-a-week wages are hefty for a player that is behind 33-year-old Ashley Young as Mourinho’s first choice at left-back. Tottenham and Everton are interested in Shaw and United want to recoup as much of the £27m they paid Southampton in 2014 but they may have to accept closer to £18m if they’re determined to get such a high earner of the books.
Mourinho will only let Shaw leave once he secures a replacement and United are interested in Juventus full-back Alex Sandro and Spurs left-back Danny Rose. That would leave around £100m plus any extra from player sales left in the kitty and United are confident they are leading the race to sign Lazio midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic. The Serbian is valued at around £80m by Lazio and United believe the midfielder’s relationship with Nemanja Matic gives them an advantage over the likes of Barcelona. Marouane Fellaini rejected United’s last contract offer – believed to be around £145,000-a-week – and he will leave for free at the end of the season if the club fail to hand him improved terms. Mourinho is keen to keep the Belgian but United won’t stretch much further than their last offer and the club will buy a second midfielder if Fellaini opts to leave. Shakhtar Donetsk midfielder Fred is a potential replacement and his team-mate Darijo Srna confirmed on Friday that the Brazilian was moving to a club in Manchester this summer but refused to confirm if it was City or United.
