The moves for Rabiot and, potentially, Milinkovic-Savic follow the growing realisation that Frenkie de Jong, United’s No 1 target throughout the summer, just does not want to join them.
Raising the possibility of signing Milinkovic-Savic will have United fans rolling their eyes given the club has been linked to the Serbian midfielder for at least the past three years. But intermediaries believe a deal can actually be done for the 27-year-old even though Lazio do not want to sell and are aware of United’s renewed interest.
They are considering offering Milinkovic-Savic a contract extension – his current deal expires in 2024. So far a price has not been set – it would take around €60m (£50m), less than De Jong’s valuation - with talks at a very early stage as United consider whether to go for it.