Manchester United in talks to sign £48m-rated Barcelona midfielder

Manchester United have reportedly made contact with Barcelona regarding a potential move for Croatian midfielder Ivan Rakitic this summer.

The Red Devils are expected to make numerous changes to the outlook of the squad after a disappointing 2018/19 league season where they managed only sixth.

According to The Mirror, the Red Devils have opened a dialogue with the Blaugrana regarding the World Cup finalist, whose position remains under uncertainty this summer.

Rakitic's gametime is likely to be reduced with the arrival of Frenkie de Jong from Ajax, and United are prepared to take advantage of the situation to lure him in a deal worth £48m.

Barcelona are currently looking at the prospect of signing both Matthijs de Ligt and Antoine Griezmann and the sale of Rakitic will help them recoup some of the funds and keep them in good stead with the Financial Fair Play.

Rakitic has also been linked with the likes of Inter Milan and Juventus in the past few weeks. The Croatian has two years remaining on his current contract with the club.