Manchester United’s $168M Bid In Vain As Barca Wonderkid Not Interested In Moving To Old Trafford: Report

Barcelona’s Ansu Fati reportedly is not interested in joining Manchester United even after the Premier League side reportedly made two bids for the 17-year-old forward.

Fati became Barcelona's youngest-ever scorer when he netted against Osasuna in the La Liga in August. He became Champions League’s youngest-ever goalscorer when he scored in Barcelona’s 2-1 victory against Inter Milan in December. While the Spain national has continued to impress with his performances, he has attracted several clubs’ attention, including Man Utd.

Last week it was reported that Man Utd were willing to pay up to $110 million for Fati but it was understood that Barcelona made themselves clear that they would not accept any kind of bargain for the striker, whose asking price was around $186 million.

There was another report that claimed that the Old Trafford side, who is looking to strengthen their squad for the 2020-21 season, then improved their offer to $168 million for the 17-year-old promising player ahead of the summer transfer market.

However, the latest report in Spain’s Mundo Deportivo has stated that Fati is looking to sign a long-term contract with Barcelona and is not interested in moving to Man Utd any time soon.

The report has further disclosed that if Fati signs a new contract with the Catalans, his release clause could shoot up to at least $449 million.

Meanwhile, Barcelona’s director Xavier Vilajoana has insisted the club was not prepared to cash in on Fati, who has scored six times since his senior debut earlier this campaign.

“For us, there’s no story with Ansu, we have never spoken about selling him. We won’t use players from the academy to make cash. In principle, we have no intention of selling the players we believe will make the first team,” Vilajoana said of Fati, who is being regarded as a successor to Barcelona captain Lionel Messi.

It is also believed that Fati, who can play on either wing or as a center-forward, has also impressed Messi and the captain wants the youngster to gradually grow with the Catalans as he had done.

“He’s an amazing player and he’s got what it takes to succeed. But if I look at it through my eyes, I’d like them to bring him on gradually, as they did with me when I started, taking things nice and easy and without putting pressure on him,” said Messi, who has been associated with Barcelona since he was 13.