Manchester United have rejected Juventus' loan offer with obligation to buy Matteo Darmian for £19.25m
United are not interested in a loan deal for Darmian and are looking for a permanent solution for £26.5m
Manchester United have rejected Juventus' offer of a 12-month loan deal for right-back Matteo Darmian from the end of the season until next summer.
The Serie A giants are seeking defensive reinforcements ahead of next season owing to the potential departures of Stephan Lichtsteiner and Kwadwo Asamoah following the expiry of their contracts.
Juventus have identified Darmian as a potential candidate to provide cover in the full-back areas. The Italy international is primarily a right-back but he has proven to be capable when deployed at left-back by Jose Mourinho in matches this season and in the previous campaign.
According to the Sun, the Turin club have made an offer to take the defender on a 12-month loan at the end of the campaign with the obligation to make it permanent in the summer of 2019 for a fee of around £19.25m ($27.4m). But the Red Devils are not interested in a loan deal and want a permanent solution at the end of the season.
The report claims that Mourinho is ready to sanction the defender's sale but the 20-time English champions have set his valuation at £26.5m. It remains to be seen if the Italian club will meet the Premier League club's demands to sign Darmian.
The 28-year-old is said to be keen to return to Italy as he is not guaranteed regular first-team football under the Portuguese coach. Antonio Valencia is Mourinho's first choice at right-back, while Ashley Young has also started ahead of him in a right wing-back role when the manager deployed a 3-5-2 formation.
Darmian has made just four appearances in the Premier League and 11 overall in all competitions, which has prompted him to seek employment elsewhere beyond the summer. However, the Sun states that he could again face competition for a regular starting role at Juventus with Mattia de Sciglio, who has served as Lichsteiner's deputy this season.
Darmian is said to be in no hurry to sort out his future and is ready to wait until the end of the summer, mainly owing to Italy's non-participation in this summer's World Cup in Russia. If Juventus do improve their offer, Inter Milan, AS Roma and Napoli have also been credited with an interest in signing the Italian defender.
