Manchester Unitedย are hoping to capitalise on their rival's misfortune this summer by signingย Olympique Lyonnais talisman Nabil Fekir, according to reports in France.
The 24-year-old was tipped to joinย Liverpoolย earlier this summer but the Reds attempted to playย hardball with the French club in the eleventhย hour of negotiations, causingย โLes Gones to pull out of the deal - leaving the Reds with egg on their face.
And now bitter rivals Manchester United will look to get one over on the Merseyside club by bringing Fekir to Old Trafford. Lyon based dailyย Le Progrรจsย claims that the Red Devils have already launched an offer for the France international this summer.
Former Ligue 1 champions Lyon are having somewhat of a mass exodus this summer.ย Sergi Darder is the most experienced player to leave theย Groupama Stadium, but youngsters Mouctar Diakhaby and Jean-Philippe Mateta have also moved on to join Valencia and Mainz respectively.
French journalist Romain Collet-Gaudin has also claimed that the interest could result in Liverpool upping their previous bid for Fekir, as the player still wishes to play for the Reds.
But Lyon's most notable departure is that of 16-year-old wonderkidย Willem Geubbels, who has left the club to join AS Monaco for ยฃ18m.
Manchester United, meanwhile, have been keeping themselves busy with incomings this summer. The club have signed teenage defender Diogo Dalot from FC Porto and Shakhtar Donetsk's Fred for a combined ยฃ73m, but their pursuit of Fekir could take the club's spending into nine figures.
United's attempts to sign Fekir could also put their hopes of bringingย Sergej Milinkoviฤ-Saviฤ to Old Trafford to bed. The Serbia international is expected to leave Lazio this summer, butย Juventusย are now the favourites for his signature.