Fabrizio Romano claims Man United are trying to extend Kobbie Mainoo's contract

Man Utd are determined to back Ruben Amorim and a total squad rebuild has been approved. But with finances tight, Man Utd must sell before they can buy and exits for homegrown stars are extra lucrative for clubs.

As such, Marcus Rashford is free to leave, while Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho would be available for the right price, according to The Athletic's David Ornstein.

Man Utd aren't actively pushing Mainoo or Garnacho out, though giant offers would be given due consideration and Chelsea have positioned themselves as favourites to sign Mainoo if given encouragement from the player.

However, Amorim has publicly insisted he wants Mainoo to stay and according to a fresh update from Fabrizio Romano, Man Utd are working towards extending his contract.

"They want to insist on contract negotiations with Kobbie Mainoo," said Romano on his YouTube channel. "So after extending the contract of Amad Diallo to 2030, Man Utd will try to push also with Kobbie Mainoo.

"Amorim in his press conference said 'we want to keep our best players, we want to keep our academy players, I'm very happy with Kobbie and how he's developing.'

"But now for Man Utd it's going to be time to try and reach an agreement with the player."

Explaining the delay in United forging a new agreement with the midfielder, Romano pointed to the upheaval behind the scenes at Old Trafford.

"Remember that there were changes in the Manchester United board" continued Romano. "New owners, then new directors, then Dan Ashworth leaves and now Jason Wilcox [taking the lead].

"So many changes and it means that sometimes you have to restart on some points in the conversations. But Man Utd are working on the new contract of Kobbie Mainoo."

Mainoo broke into Man Utd's starting eleven at the beginning of 2024 before embarking on a meteoric rise.

He quickly established himself as a guaranteed starter and forced his way into England's plans at Euro 2024.

But back at Old Trafford, Mainoo pockets just £20,000-a-week - a not insignificant sum, but not one befitting of a player of Mainoo's calibre and influence.

It had been speculated throughout most of 2024 that Man Utd and Mainoo were close to agreeing a new and improved deal. But as Romano stated, the mass change in United's hierarchy put Mainoo's contract on the back burner.

And having put off a new deal for this long, Man Utd may have to commit to a more expensive package than they would've done if agreeing a new deal earlier.

The Mirror recently claimed Mainoo and his camp are demanding a 900 percent pay rise from £20,000-a-week to £200,000-a-week.

The player's demands are not quite that high, though it will still take a colossal pay increase before he signs on the dotted line.

In other news, transfer insider Rudy Galetti says Man Utd are now willing to offload Marcus Rashford via the loan route. The club's preference remains a permanent sale, though a loan exit will be sanctioned if suitable offers aren't received.

That has prompted numerous clubs to make enquiries, though as yet not a single side has made an official bid.

Galetti also revealed Arsenal and Tottenham have gathered information on a potential Rashford deal. However, Man Utd would much prefer to do business with an overseas side.

Elsewhere, trusted reporter David Ornstein revealed the feeling within Man Utd at present is signing Joshua Zirkzee may have been a mistake.

"I think there's been uncertainty around his immediate future because his transfer so far from Bologna hasn't really gone to plan," said Ornstein. "There's a feeling inside United at the moment that maybe that was a mistake.

"It is very early days, and this story focuses on him and his intentions. Despite a lot of interest reportedly building from elsewhere, he doesn't intend to leave at the time of recording, and things can change."

Finally, Man Utd will seal the first signing of the Amorim era in the form of Paraguayan left-back, Diego Leon.

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