Manchester United are allegedly looking to hijack any move for Darwin Nunez as differing reports speculate about the role super-agent Jorge Mendes will play in the striker's future.
The Benfica star enjoyed a breakout season for the Portuguese side, scoring 34 times as they made it to the last eight of the Champions League. It means he is now one of the most in-demand players on the continent with several Premier League clubs keen and Atletico Madrid known admirers.
Liverpool and United are in the market for forward recruits; the Reds could potentially lose wantaway winger Sadio Mane whilst their rivals are looking to provide more firepower alongside Cristiano Ronaldo amid an Edinson Cavani-led exodus in the final third this summer.
Nunez, wise to his future prospects, has changed agent, leaving his Uruguayan representative, Edgardo Lasalvia, to link up with Mendes, who also manages the future of Ronaldo and many other big names. SIC Noticias reports that the influential figure is in his native Portugal as he attempts to convince Nunez to move to Old Trafford. However, other sources have since dismissed this as false.
The 22-year-old has concerns about heading to Manchester following their failure to qualify for the Champions League. A below par season saw the Red Devils finish sixth, meaning they will play in the Europa League next season. That is one advantage Liverpool have over United.
Mirror Football understands that no formal offer has yet been made for the Benfica striker by Jurgen Klopp's side, but talks are open as they look to explore the structure of a deal, which is set to see the Reds pay a club-record fee. Any move for Nunez is likely to see Liverpool pay between £83-85million when add-ons are taken into account.
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Benfica had slapped a €100million (£85m) price tag on one of Europe's most-wanted, but Liverpool have made it clear they will not pay that figure up front. While Mane's future could yet accelerate things, Bayern have been told to come back with a better offer.
Their latest bid saw them table an initial £23.5million up front in a £30million deal. The £6.5million in add-ons included bold clauses that would have required the Senegalese forward to win the Ballon d'Or on three occasions, whilst Bayern would have also needed to scoop prizes domestically and in Europe.
Mane recently said on his future: "I respect the fans and team but 60 to 70 per cent of Senegalese want me to leave Liverpool? I'll do what they want." He later clarified his comments, stating: "I spoke yesterday while joking with a bit of humour and it was everywhere. I think we'll stop there. Liverpool is a club I respect a lot. The fans adopted me since day one. Regarding the future, we'll see."
