Manchester United close to signing Ivan Perisic after agreeing £45.3m deal with Inter

Manchester United are a step closer to signing Ivan Perisic after agreeing a €52 million (£45.3m) deal with Inter, according to reports in Italy.

La Gazzetta dello Sport claim that a fee has been reached between the two clubs and the Croatia international now needs to agree personal terms with Jose Mourinho’s side.

Inter are being forced to sell one of their key players before the end of June in order to meet Financial Fair Play regulations, otherwise their summer transfer budget will be restricted.

And Perisic is set to be the one who will make way, despite an impressive season at San Siro.

The 28-year-old scored 11 goals and registered eight assists in 36 Serie A appearances, although Inter finished in seventh place, 14 points behind the Champions League places.

United, meanwhile, are still looking to secure their first summer signing after being dealt a major blow in their chase for Antoine Griezmann.

The decision to uphold Atletico Madrid’s transfer ban has meant that the France international is staying in Spain, which forces United to focus on other targets.

United have been heavily linked with a move for Perisic over the last few weeks but on Thursday, their deal appeared to hit a stumbling block as incoming Inter boss Luciano Spalletti urged the Italian club not to sell the winger.

But it now appears Inter’s hierarchy have accepted United’s offer, paving the way for Mourinho’s first marquee summer signing.

Chelsea ready to abandon Tiemoué Bakayoko deal to focus on Corentin Tolisso

Chelsea are reportedly ready to walk out on a move for Monaco midfielder Tiemoué Bakayoko after growing frustrated by prolonged negotiations with ‘intermediaries’.

The Blues have been in talks with the Frenchman for close to two months and had been believed to be close to agreeing a £42million deal.

However, French publication L’Equipe claim Antonio Conte’s side are frustrated by intermediaries connected to the player that are dragging out talks.

Chelsea are keen on Lyon midfielder Corentin Tolisso and held talks with Lyon’s president Jean-Michel Aulas last week in London.

L’Equipe report that the Blues are ready to abandon their deal for Bakayoko and will go all out to sign Tolisso, who is valued at roughly half of the £42m that Monaco are demanding for Bakayoko
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Arsenal are believed to be keen on signing Tolisso but the France international intimated this week that he would not leave Lyon for a side outside of the Champions League.

‘I don’t know if I’ll be at Lyon next year. I want to play the Champions League and the World Cup,’ said Tolisso.

‘To be at the World Cup, you have to play the very, very big games. And you play big games in the Champions League.’

Antoine Griezmann contacted Manchester United after Atletico Madrid’s transfer ban news

Antoine Griezmann contacted Manchester United following the decision to uphold Atletico Madrid’s transfer ban, according to reports in Spain.

On Thursday, the Court of Arbitration for Sport announced that Atletico’s sanction would remain in place this summer, meaning that no signings can be made.

And El Partidazo de COPE claim that after hearing the news, the France international got in touch with United to explain that he is not willing to leave Atletico for Old Trafford this summer.

The Spanish club had been targeting moves for Alexandre Lacazette and Diego Costa as replacements for Griezmann but their transfer ban means that they are now unable to sign anyone until January 2018.

On Thursday evening, Griezmann appeared to confirm his desire to stay with Diego Simeone’s side with a post on Instagram which was captioned: ‘Now more than ever #Atleti #Alltogether’.

United, meanwhile, have diverted their focus from Griezmann to an attacker who is more capable of playing as a No.9.

Romelu Lukaku, Andrea Belotti and Alvaro Morata are all on United’s radar, although the Real Madrid striker has reportedly agreed personal terms with AC Milan.