Paris Saint-Germain's Edinson Cavani. (Photo : Reuters)
Manchester United is eyeing Paris Saint-Germain attacker Edinson Cavani to command their offense next season following the transfer of veteran striker Robin van Persie to Turkish club Fenerbahçe this summer.
The Guardian indicated that the Uruguayan international is Red Devils manager Louis van Gaal's first choice to plug the huge offensive hole created by van Persie's departure.
With the Netherlands international gone, team captain Wayne Rooney is said to be the only remaining legitimate goal scorer at van Gaal's disposal. Colombian striker Radamel Falcao is set to join Chelsea this year on loan from Monaco after playing for United last season also on loan.
So far this offseason, United had acquired German midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger from Bayern Munich, Italian full-back Matteo Darmian from Torino, and Dutch winger Memphis Depay from PSV Eindhoven to beef up their roster, but van Gaal thinks that no one among the three could appropriately replace the Rotterdam native's scoring prowess.
Meanwhile, ESPN reported that Les Rouge-et-Bleu manager Laurent Blanc is demanding Ángel Di María in exchange for Cavani in a potential direct swap deal.
With the Argentine scorer's publicly known struggles on and off the pitch in England, the Red Devils had been contemplating on releasing him this season. The call from Blanc raised hope for van Gaal as he also wants Cavani at the Old Trafford side.
Di María was initially firm on staying with United, but recent reports said that the attacking midfielder had "changed his mind" and was keen on moving with his family to France and join the defending Ligue 1 champions.
