Manchester United are in pursuit of Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount and their advances are 'slowly creeping along' with the possibility of a deal being completed before an official takeover of the club is finalized not being out of the question, according to journalist Dean Jones.
What's the latest transfer news involving Mason Mount?
According to Sky Sports, Manchester United are set to approach Chelsea with a formal bid for Mount before too long; however, a gap in valuation between the two clubs is still in play.
The report states that discussions are continuing over the England international between Manchester United and Chelsea, with the Red Devils keen to avoid paying over the odds to land Mount.
90min understand that Chelsea are holding out for around £70 million before they will consider parting ways with the 24-year-old, who is set to enter the final 12 months of his £80k-a-week contract at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea are still willing to try and convince Mount to sign an extension and Blues boss Mauricio Pochettino is believed to be keen to work with the Portsmouth-born playmaker next term.
As per The Mirror, the ownership of Manchester United could be about to change hands in the coming weeks, as both Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani's Nine Two Foundation and Sir Jim Ratcliffe's petrochemicals firm INEOS are vying to assume control at Old Trafford.
Speaking to Football FanCast, journalist Jones hasn't ruled out the possibility of Mount joining Manchester United before a takeover of the Red Devils is officially completed.
Jones told FFC: "I don't think this one is especially dependent on a takeover. I'm not sure they could do a Harry Kane style deal before a takeover is confirmed, but Mount's been moving forward slowly, creeping along over the past week."
What would Mason Mount bring to Manchester United?
Mount would bring quality, a high work ethic and further composure to Manchester United's midfield and would be a smart acquisition by Erik Ten Hag despite his inconsistent campaign at Chelsea that has just gone.
All in, the 24-year-old made 35 appearances for Chelsea in all competitions across 2022/23 and managed to register three goals and six assists, as per Transfermarkt.
FBRef also take into account that Mount has excelled in comparison to his positional peers across Europe's top five divisions regarding progressive passes, having made around 5.95 per 90 minutes on the field across the past 365 days, putting him in the top 10% of midfielders in big leagues on the continent for this metric.
As per WhoScored, Mount also carried a keen goal threat during the season, amassing 1.4 shots on goal per fixture in the Premier League.
Manchester United are a side that are slowly embracing an upward trajectory and bringing Mount to Old Trafford would help them to move closer to becoming title challengers in the English top flight.
