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Manchester United suffer Andrea Belotti setback as Jose Mourinho's three-man striker shortlist is cut to one

Romelu Lukaku has snubbed a move to Old Trafford to return to Chelsea

Wednesday 07 June 2017 12:12 BST

Belotti has an £87m release clause (Getty)

Manchester United have been dealt yet another setback in their search for a new striker as Torino insist they are planning to keep Andrea Belotti for next season.

Jose Mourinho had been hoping to persuade Romelu Lukaku to join him at Old Trafford but was rebuffed in favour of a return to Chelsea and now Belotti looks set to stay where he is.

The 23-year-old has a £87m release clause and was on United’s shortlist for a new goalscoring, having netted 26 Serie A goals last season.

Manchester United summer transfer targets

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1/8Manchester United summer transfer targets

Manchester United summer transfer targets

Ivan Perisic, Inter Milan

United want to spend £35m on Perisic but Inter are holding out for closer to £50m. That said, Mourinho is a big fan and may be willing to go the extra mile to get him. Likelihood: 7/10

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Manchester United summer transfer targets

Renato Sanches - Bayern Munich

Sanches was being chased by United before deciding on Bayern Munich last summer but is back on their radar again 12 months later. He is available for £43m and Ancelotti has admitted United are "a possibility".

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Manchester United summer transfer targets

Fabinho - Monaco

An extremely versatile player Mourinho sees him more as a defensive midfielder and could be used to give Paul Pogba, last summer's big addition, more freedom. Monaco aren't in any rush to lose any more first team stars this summer though and are likely to demand a hefty fee. Likelihood: 7/10

AFP/Getty Images

Manchester United summer transfer targets

Eric Dier - Tottenham

United have already had a bid less than £25m rejected for the defensive midfielder and know they must more than double it to have any hope of signing Dier, who is understood to want the move.

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Manchester United summer transfer targets

Nemanja Matic - Chelsea

Nemanja Matic has twice worked under Jose Mourinho before and he wants to make it a third time at United. However, after beating Chelsea to Romelu Lukaku, relations between the two clubs have been soured somewhat.

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Manchester United summer transfer targets

Gareth Bale - Real Madrid

The Real Madrid forward would be a marquee signing, the type that the Manchester United boardroom are keen to make, and The Independent has been told by sources from both United and Madrid that a deal is 'much likelier' than ever before. The player himself though is happy in the Spanish capital. Likelihood: 5/10

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Manchester United summer transfer targets

Willian - Chelsea

Mourinho is a huge admirer of Willian, who he signed in 2013 while at Chelsea. The pair won a Premier League title and League Cup double together the following year and it is believed that the United manager will do his best to sign the player, who has not been a regular starter in Antonio Conte’s system. Whether Chelsea will allow him to leave, particularly to join Mourinho at their rivals is yet to be seen. Likelihood: 4/10

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Manchester United summer transfer targets

Andrea Belotti - Torino

Another of Europe’s most promising players, Belotti is fast becoming well-known after his outstanding performances at Torino, where he has scored 37 goals in 64 appearances since 2015. His best years are still ahead of him aged just 23, which contributes to the incredible €100m release clause, applicable only to clubs outside of Italy, negotiated into his contract. Torino are in no hurry to sell and will drive a hard bargain with any deal likely to start at upwards of £70m. Likelihood: 7/10

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AC Milan are also interested in Belotti as his release clause from the contract he signed in December only applies to clubs from abroad, and not fellow Serie A sides.

If United want Belotti, they must trigger his release clause in its entirety, as club president Urbano Cairo insisted they will not negotiate selling their star striker.

“I'm not thinking about selling Belotti,” he said to Gazzetta dello Sport.

“Belotti is my player, we only renewed his contract recently. Our objective is to keep him.

“After that, there is a release clause that would make me obliged to sell him, providing someone came in with €100m from abroad.

“Let's see. I haven't talked to him yet because he is currently with the national team. We will see how things go, but our intention would be to keep him.”

The news comes less than 24 hours after The Independent revealed Lukaku has agreed to join Chelsea over United in a deal worth more than £80m.

United made an enquiry last week and, while they were not given a firm “no”, the Old Trafford club were told that a deal with Chelsea is very close.

With those two ruled out, a deal for Real Madrid’s Alvaro Morata looks the most likely route Mourinho will look to go down.

Morata scored 20 goals for the club last season but will not win a starting place at the Bernabeu with Cristiano Ronaldo moving into a more central attacking position and Real also looking to add Kylian Mbappe.

Real Madrid are understood to want around £78m for the Spaniard as United are finding it increasingly difficult to find any value in the striker market, with clubs inflating their asking prices give the Red Devils’ superior wealth.

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