Marquee Man Utd signing decimated as Prem forward ‘very much’ ready to snub Ratcliffe for rivals
Crystal Palace winger Michael Olise alongside the Manchester United and Arsenal badges
Manchester United target Michael Olise is reportedly prepared to snub the advances of the club in order to move to one of their rivals.
Olise’s been on a constant rise since his breakout season for Reading in 2020/21. The winger’s seven goals and 12 assists in the Championship paved the way for a move to Premier League Crystal Palace.
His first season saw him warm to the top flight, with two goals and five assists.
The following campaign, he missed just a single league game, and finished the season with two goals alongside 11 assists – only three players had more in the Premier League.
With Olise cutting it with the big boys, he was courted by Chelsea. The Blues activated his release clause in the summer, but he turned the move down and instead opted to pen a new deal at Selhurst Park.
That means his previous £35million price tag is likely to rise by some way, and some other big sides could try their hand at reaching it.
Indeed, it’s recently been reported that Manchester United are interested in moving for Olise.
With Jadon Sancho on his way out the door, the Palace winger could be the perfect replacement to kick off the Sir Jim Ratcliffe revolution at Old Trafford.
Olise ready to snub United
But United could be out of luck, as FootballTransfers report the winger is not interested in moving there.
Indeed, they state Olise would ‘very much prefer’ to go to Arsenal instead of United.
He was a boyhood fan of the club, and came close to signing for them before he instead joined Chelsea’s academy.
A move to the Emirates has a chance of happening now, though.
Arsenal want to snatch Olise
Indeed, the report also states that the Gunners ‘remain interested’ in snaring Olise, with Mikel Arteta a fan of his.
However, a January move would rely on some talent being shifted out of the Emirates first.
But it will be better for them to do that and move for the winger now than wait, with his price set to rise at the end of the season.
Indeed, it’s believed Olise will command a fee of £60million at that point, when his new release clause comes into effect.
It is said that if Arsenal don’t get him in January, they’ll attempt to in the summer, but with that price rise coming, it looks as if those attempts will come soon.
Arteta will need to assess who he’s willing to get rid of if he deems the move for Olise one not to pass up on.
