Manchester United have joined Arsenal in the race to sign Villareal defender Gabriel Paulisa according to Tuttomercato web. The Brazilian, 24, has a €20M (£15.1M) buyout clause in his contract and it is has been widely reported that Arsenal would be signing the defender in the coming days.
However, the Italian based tuttomercato web are reporting that United will now challenge Arsenal for Gabriel Paulista, despite Arsene Wenger’s comments confirming that Arsenal are in talks to sign him. The defender would be available between £10M and his buyout fee, as Arsenal try and negotiate a lower price with Villareal; now, much like Arsene Wenger, Louis van Gaal has been impressed by Gabriel and wants to bolster his defensive options by beating Arsenal to their top CB target.
Given United’s defensive issues, and the news that Chris Smalling and Jonny Evans picked up injuries prior to United’s trip to Cambridge; a move for a strong defender with room to grow, such as Gabriel Paulista would make sense – and could prove a coup at a price somewhere between £10M and £15M.
