Chelsea, Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain are reportedly in a three-horse race to secure the signing of Santos midfielder Thiago Maia.
The 20-year-old has racked up over 60 league appearances for the Brazilian outfit, while he played a big role at the Olympics in Rio last summer to come away with a gold medal.
In turn, that form for club and country has seemingly attracted interest from Europe with The Sun crediting Chelsea, United and PSG with an interest.
It’s added that he’ll cost around £16m and while the French giants were said to be close to signing him in January, a move never materialised and so both the Premier League sides now have another opportunity this summer to snap him up.
Both Chelsea and United will be keen to bolster their midfield options too ahead of next season, with the former now looking to add quality and depth ahead of defending their Premier League crown while also competing in the Champions League.
N’Golo Kante, Nemanja Matic and Cesc Fabregas have all been key to their success this season, but more will certainly be needed moving forward.
As for United, with Michael Carrick likely to step away sooner rather than later, Jose Mourinho needs a long-term solution in that defensive midfield role and while Maia isn’t the only name being linked with a switch to Old Trafford, it seems as though he could be an option.
It’s claimed that Santos are resigned to the fact that they will lose Maia, so now they will hope for the best possible result which could even be a bidding war between the three European heavyweights this summer.