Leeds United to battle Manchester United for £35 million midfielder

Roses, in general, are associated with love. But does everybody relate to that? Perhaps not. We are well aware of the long-lived “Roses rivalry”, that includes two of the biggest fanbases in England, Leeds United (bearer of the white rose of Yorkshire) and Manchester United (representative of the red rose of Lancaster).

For those fans, “rose” is not a symbol of affection. Only one result matters the most, and that is who wins at the end of the ninety minutes.

Manchester United welcomed newly-promoted Leeds United, led by the legendary Marcelo Bielsa, last December, only to send the visitors home with a 6-2 defeat. It was a good day at the office for the Red Devils.

While Bielsa has clearly failed to worry Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in a face-to-face duel, the Argentine is considering handing him a defeat in an off-field contest, the battle of signing one of the most highly-rated youngsters in the world next summer.

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Leeds United and Manchester United both want Boubakary Soumare

According to a report from Football Insider, Leeds United have joined the race for Lille midfielder Boubakary Soumare, who has been linked with a summer move to Manchester United, Leicester City, Manchester City, Liverpool and some other big boys across Europe in the past.

As reported by the Shields Gazette, Newcastle United tried to lure the Frenchman in the last January transfer window. They reportedly had made a bid of £35 million, which the Ligue 1 side eventually accepted.

But Soumare ended up rejecting the move. However, it is now clear that anything around £30 million would be sufficient to land the 21-year-old in the forthcoming summer as his contract with Lille is set to expire in June 2022.

Soumare has made 29 appearances across all competitions for the side that currently occupies the top spot on the Ligue 1 table, playing an essential part in marching the midfield for Lille.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is a huge admirer of the former PSG academy star. And defensive midfield could be an area the Norwegian will be looking to strengthen in the summer. And Soumare is available for what certainly seems to be a reasonable transfer fee.