Manchester United scout Sassuolo midfielder Davide Frattesi as Cristiano Ronaldo lined up by Inter Miami – Paper Round

United face Davide Frattesi

Manchester United have sent scouts to watch Sassuolo midfielder Davide Frattesi. The club will face competition if they want to sign the 23-year-old, though. The player is attracting attention from Tottenham, Brighton and West Ham, and there are clubs from Italy interested as well, according to The Sun. Inter Milan and Roma are both looking at the Serie A player.

Paper Round’s view: Under Erik ten Hag, United have done well so far to get some obvious improvement but there is plenty of work to do yet. The club are still giving Fred and Scott McTominay regular game time and as much as they are willing to put in the effort, they do not have sufficient quality for the club if they want to challenge for titles once more.

Ronaldo could make MLS switch

The Mirror reports that Inter Miami could be an option for Cristiano Ronaldo this January. The 37-year-old striker has struggled for time on the pitch under Erik ten Hag, and the club could be willing to let him go in January for £10 million. The player is frustrated after being sidelined and the MLS side are keen to bring him in on a £30m salary, but would want to buy him on a free transfer.

Paper Round’s view: Given the huge wages that United pay Ronaldo a £10m transfer fee would certainly be appreciated, but if he is not going to be used much – if Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial remain fit – then it would make sense to save on his salary and let him leave for nothing. For Ronaldo, he would have to give up on Champions League football for good.

Bournemouth takeover done

Bournemouth now have a new owner, according to the Mail. The south coast club was bought by American billionaire Bill Foley, with the deal complete for £150m. Checks have to be done by the Premier League before the takeover can be considered fully official, but the club’s change of ownership means that half the clubs in the league are owned by Americans.

Paper Round’s view: Foley also owns the Las Vegas Golden Knights so he does have some experience of running clubs in the top flight, but will now have to deal with relegation/promotion, and trust that the current executive setup is able to keep them in the Premier League to avoid the financial problems that comes with dropping out of the league.

Atletico strike new Griezmann deal

Atletico Madrid have agreed new terms for 31-year-old striker Antoine Griezmann with Barcelona. They will pay 20 million euros for the French international and another two million in potential add-ons. Griezmann will also take a cut in his salary for the move, which was originally due to cost 40m euros. The transfer allows Griezmann to start playing more regularly.

Paper Round’s view: Griezmann was limited to making starting appearances because Atletico would have been obliged to pay up. Now that a compromise has been reached, Atletico save money and get a player they can use more, Griezmann gets more game time ahead of the World Cup next month, and Barcelona get to trim their future wage obligations.