Exclusive: Man Utd eyeing £50m transfer and current player would be ideal to help him settle, says expert

Manchester United’s transfer interest in Nice defender Jean-Clair Todibo has been confirmed by Jonathan Johnson in the French football expert’s exclusive column for the Daily Briefing.

The Red Devils could do with making changes to their defence, with the future of players like Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof looking uncertain, while Jonny Evans is surely not a long-term option and even Raphael Varane isn’t getting any younger.

According to Johnson, Todibo looks like he could be a good option for Man Utd, though he won’t come cheap and could command a fee of at least £50million or even more after reviving his career with Nice.

The Frenchman struggled in a spell at Barcelona as a youngster, but Johnson now believes he’s ready to try again at a top club, so United could do well to bring him in and use the experience of his fellow countryman Varane to help him settle in at Old Trafford.

“Jean-Clair Todibo is known to be one of the names on Manchester United’s list of centre-back targets for 2024, and it would be interesting to see what kind of impact that would have on Raphael Varane,” Johnson said.

“The former Real Madrid man turns 31 later this season, but I don’t think Todibo would necessarily be arriving as a long-term successor to his fellow Frenchman. I think, if anything, Varane could be a good figure to have around to help someone like Todibo settle in, and players like Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof might be ones who find their place in the team is more under threat from his arrival.

“We know that Maguire isn’t enjoying the easiest relationship with Erik ten Hag, even if there are perhaps signs of some improvement recently, and Lindelof’s contract is close to expiring, even if there’s an option to extend it, so