‘Close to full agreement’: Romano confirms substantial transfer breakthrough that’ll have repercussions for United | OneFootball

Having failed in their initial pursuit of Alejandro Garnacho with a £40 million bid, Napoli quickly switched their attention to alternatives.

The Serie A leaders have had to be proactive in their search for a suitable Khvicha Kvaratskhelia successor following his permanent move to Paris Saint-Germain.

At first, Antonio Conte had set his sights on Manchester United’s No.17 and urged the board to be unrelenting in their efforts to bring the youngster to Naples. Yet, when INEOS stood firm in their £60m valuation, the club decided to call it a day and look elsewhere.

They quickly approached Borussia Dortmund to gauge Karim Adeyemi’s availability this month and are now on the verge of sanctioning the German’s arrival in a £33m deal. Fabrizio Romano confirmed on Friday the two clubs were ‘close to reaching a full agreement’ – but will briefly put negotiations on hold for their respective fixtures this weekend.

Chelsea are still mulling over their Garnacho pursuit

Garnacho looked emotional when he left the turf on Thursday evening. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

So, how does this impact United?

Napoli ending their interest in Garnacho – essentially – gives Chelsea a free run at acquiring his signature before the February 3 deadline, as they know United would hugely benefit from the Profit and Sustainability boost made through his sale.

Reports have suggested the 20-year-old would prefer to stay in England’s top flight, so when he gave an impassioned exit down the tunnel at Old Trafford on Thursday night while applauding and waving to each stand, fans began assuming he’d played his final game at home.

Post-match, Garnacho, who is now an established Argentina international, shared several snaps of himself in action against Rangers and ended his caption saying: “Thank you Old Trafford.”

Barring any substantial developments today, it looks as though he will travel with the squad to London and perhaps feature in some form against Fulham, which could mark his last-ever outing in red.

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