Man Utd transfer blow: ‘Agreement’ reached for ‘golden boy’ as Ratcliffe’s ‘mega-money swoop’ fails | OneFootball

Arthur Vermeeren is reportedly close to joining Atletico Madrid.

Manchester United-linked Antwerp wonderkid Arthur Vermeeren is closing in on a move to Atletico Madrid, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Vermeeren has caught the eye with his performances in Belgium and the Champions League this term, notably scoring and being named man of the match in a 3-2 win over Barcelona in December.

The 18-year-old has been linked with a host of top clubs around Europe and he is not short of suitors in the Premier League.

Tottenham, Arsenal and Manchester United are all believed to be interested but it is the Red Devils who have been the most strongly linked, with one report claiming new owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe is planning a ‘mega-money swoop’.

It looks like Erik ten Hag is set to miss out on the signing of Vermeeren after La Liga giants Atletico Madrid reached an agreement with Antwerp.

On Tuesday, Romano revealed that the Belgian side accepted a bid worth ‘in excess of €25million’ after rejecting a ‘€15m package’ last week.

Romano is yet to say ‘here we go’ with talks over personal terms ongoing.

He provided another update on Wednesday morning, writing on X: ‘Atletico Madrid are preparing formal documents for Arthur Vermeeren deal after the agreement with Antwerp on €22m fee plus add-ons.

‘Atleti will also speak again to Arthur and his camp today in order to complete personal terms agreement and get the deal sealed.’

This should be a huge coup for Diego Simeone’s side, who are landing a true ‘golden boy, as per a Nacional report last May.

That report said Vermeeren would cost around €10m, which emphasises how impressive he has been this campaign.

Barcelona are another side interested in signing the highly-rated teenager – who has been compared to Xavi and Iniesta. Not a bad comparison, that.

Speaking before Antwerp’s Champions League match at the Nou Camp in September, manager Mark van Bommel said he would not talk to Barca boss Xavi about the young midfielder as “he would buy him immediately”.

“Whether Xavi has asked for some information on Arthur Vermeeren? I won’t give him any information, because he would buy him immediately,” Van Bommel joked.

He added: “I won the Champions League there and I played with Xavi in the midfield. That was fun. I still have some contact with the kit man. It has been 15 years ago so a lot has changed of course.”