Man Utd and Chelsea ‘target Josip Juranovic’ after Celtic star publicly welcomes big move

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Chelsea are considering a swoop for Celtic right-back Josip Juranovic this month as Thomas Tuchel looks to make two more defensive additions before the summer transfer deadline. Manchester United are also circling the highly-rated defender after a stellar first season in Scotland as Erik ten Hag eyes reinforcements of his own.

According to 90min, Chelsea are interested in Juranovic and have been doing background work on a move for several weeks to weigh up the possibility of a move. The Blues are now ready to make their play to provide Reece James with healthy competition for the remainder of the season.

Inter Milan’s Denzel Dumfries and Southampton’s Kyle Walker-Peters are also understood to be among Tuchel’s shortlist. But both would likely demand a more significant transfer fee than Juranovic, which will appeal to Chelsea after splashing out almost £100million on Kalidou Koulibaly and Marc Cucurella.

The report claims Celtic would consider cashing in on the 26-year-old, but it will take more than £15m to prize one of their top stars away from Parkhead. And Chelsea face competition from United, with Ten Hag willing to offload Aaron Wan-Bissaka and wanting an upgrade on current first-choice Diogo Dalot.

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United are also interested in Dumfries, but Juranovic would be more budget-friendly and boasts the necessary qualities to become a regular starter at Old Trafford quickly. After joining Celtic from Legia Warsaw in a £2.5m deal last summer, he was named in the Scottish Premiership Team of the Year.

Atletico Madrid are among the heavyweight suitors touted this summer, and Juranovic has indicated that he welcomes such interest in his services. The Croatia international admitted he ‘hoped’ there was substance to Atletico’s reported interest, which suggests an approach from Chelsea or United could be too difficult to turn down.

He told RTL: “I hope there was something in the stories, but honestly, I didn’t even ask our manager or anything about it. I didn’t care. I have to keep my feet firmly on the ground. It was Atletico Madrid after all, but I’m at a big club already, Celtic.”

Chelsea could launch their bid to sign him imminently, but United’s interest would only likely turn concrete once Wan-Bissaka’s future is resolved. But Juranovic has made serious waves as one of the numerous exciting right-backs in the Scottish Premiership and, by the sounds of things, would jump at the chance of a Premier League switch.

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