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Manchester United are reportedly having “concrete conversations” with the agents of Roma midfielder Manu Kone.

That is the update from Fabrizio Romano, who has also tried to explain why a possible move for Kone from Man Utd has still not moved on to anything more advanced.

In his latest post on his YouTube channel, Romano said the Red Devils have been in contact with the player’s camp, but have not yet opened serious talks with Roma over a deal for the France international.

For the moment, it appears United still have not made up their mind on whether Kone should be their main priority, with other options possibly still being considered.

“Man United spoke to the agents of the player,” Romano said. “Man United had concrete conversations with the agents of the player, but Man United are yet to reach out to Roma because they are yet to decide which player they want as defensive midfielder.

“So Man United have not started an official negotiation with Roma, have not sent an official bid for Manu Kone because of what they want to do in midfield.”

Kone is clearly a player United rate highly, and this is not the first time we have heard speculation about the 25-year-old’s future this summer.

L’Equipe had earlier also linked Kone with Arsenal, while suggesting that Roma would likely demand around €50m to part with him.

In today’s market, that seems like a fairly good price, but Romano’s latest update indicates that other names such as Danilo and Carlos Baleba may also be worth watching closely.

Kone does look like he could be another strong addition to the United midfield, though the club have already strengthened in that area this summer with deals for Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos.

If MUFC can bring in a third midfielder at a low cost, that would mark a very solid rebuild in that part of the squad, and would also point to smarter recruitment behind the scenes after so many years of heavy spending without much success on the pitch in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era.