Manchester United considering a January move for Barcelona forward after Ronaldo exit

Having parted ways with Cristiano Ronaldo last month, Manchester United are in the market for a new forward in the January transfer window. And Barcelona forward Memphis Depay is among the options that the Red Devils are looking at, reports Simon Jones of the Daily Mail.

The 28-year-old Dutchman is no stranger to life at Manchester United, having spent eighteen months at the club between 2015 and 2017 before moving to Lyon. Depay did not have the best of time at the Premier League and relished a move to France where he thrived.

After a successful stint with Lyon, the Netherlands international arrived at Barcelona in the summer of 2021 at the request of former manager Ronald Koeman.

While he started well, Depay has gradually lost prominence at the club, especially this season. The Dutchman came close to leaving the club in the summer, but a move to Juventus fell through. However, an exit in the recently-opened January window is a possibility.

Barça are looking to reduce their wage bill and generate revenue as well, and would be open to selling the forward, who has played just three times so far this season.

However, according to recent reports, the 28-year-old is not keen on leaving Barcelona this month. Instead, he would prefer to see out his contract with the Blaugrana and leave as a free agent in the summer, so that he can get a more lucrative contract offer.

But with Manchester United bidding goodbye to Ronaldo and missing out on top target Cody Gakpo, they could decide to make a strong push for Depay, although they are also looking at other options such as Marcus Thuram and Vincent Aboubakar.

So, it will be certainly interesting to see whether there is a possibility of Depay leaving Barcelona in January, especially with manager Xavi insisting that he does not want to let any players depart.