Donny van de Beek linked with AS Roma transfer

Jose Mourinho is keen to make Manchester United's Donny van de Beek one of his first signings at AS Roma.

Mourinho is set to take the reins from Paulo Fonseca next season after he was given his marching orders. Fonseca will retain the job until the end of the season, at which point his compatriot will take over.

Mourinho's impending arrival, as well as the high-scoring meeting between Roma and United in the Europa League, means that the Red Devils are something of a hot topic in Italy. Cue, massively overreaching transfer rumour involving one of their players.

Calcio Mercato are claiming that Roma are keen to rekindle their interest in Van de Beek, and want to make him one of their first signings under Mourinho after he has 'failed to settle' since joining United last summer.

The report is exactly three sentences long, but there are a number of red flags as to its viability. Firstly, it claims that Mourinho and Van de Beek 'met in Manchester', despite the manager leaving in December 2018 - a whole 18 months before the Dutchman arrived.

It discusses Van de Beek in the past tense, as if United have already given up on him, but there is nothing yet to suggest this is actually the case. 90min learned in April that the club are open to moving him on this summer, but only if it facilitates another transfer - such as a deal for one of Borussia Dortmund's Jadon Sancho or Erling Haaland.

But they are not prepared to pull the plug on him completely just yet. His one season in Manchester has been difficult, especially with the form of Bruno Fernandes keeping him out of the team, but there is still hope that he could deliver on his potential - he is just 24 after all.

Considering they paid £40m for him a year ago, it seems highly unlikely that they will settle for a substantial loss on that this summer.

Calcio Mercato suggest that Roma approached United about Van de Beek earlier in the season, but were scared off when they asked for Nicolo Zaniolo in return. But he hasn't kicked a ball since the final day of last season against Juventus due to a serious cruciate injury, so again, it seems unlikely.

It's not entirely off the table that Van de Beek could join Roma at some point, but the priority for now seems to be finding a role for him in the United team. In January, he was determined not to 'give up' on his career at Old Trafford, and with United's hectic schedule, he may have a bigger role to play in the final few games of the season.