Manchester United set to make talented teenage defender second summer signing

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

Leny Yoro is flying to England for a medical and could complete a £50m move to Manchester United.

The 18-year-old Lille defender has agreed personal terms with the FA Cup winners and is likely to become their second summer signing.

Yoro also attracted interest from Real Madrid but United had a bid – of an initial £42m plus add-ons - accepted by Lille and they are closing in on the signing of the centre-back.

Yoro could be a replacement for his fellow Frenchman Raphael Varane, who was released at the end of his contract when United opted not to trigger a one-year extension.

United have also submitted two bids for Jarrad Branthwaite, which have both been rejected by Everton, who value the England international at £70m or more, while they have been in talks about a move for Bayern Munich’s Matthijs de Ligt.

Nice’s Jean-Clair Todibo was a potential target but United were unable to pursue their interest due to rulings about multi-club ownership.

United want at least one and possibly two centre-backs this summer. They have agreed on a new one-year deal with Jonny Evans but have sold teenager Willy Kambwala to Villarreal while Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof have each entered the last season of their current contracts.

Yoro, meanwhile, has one year left on his contract with Lille. He debuted for them in 2022 at just 16 and became a regular last season, making 44 appearances. He is a France Under-21 international.

United have made one signing since Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos assumed control of footballing issues, buying forward Joshua Zirkzee from Bologna on Sunday.

They are also looking for a midfielder as well as potentially another centre-back. They aim to keep their summer net spend to around £50m. Besides selling Kambwala, they have agreed to sell forward Mason Greenwood to Marseille.