Manchester United would have to pay Sporting Lisbon attacking midfielder Pedro Goncalves’s €60m (£54m) release clause if they want to sign him, according to reports in the Portuguese media.

The 22-year-old, who has been touted as the ‘next Bruno Fernandes‘ by some in the English press, has been in excellent form this season having scored 11 goals in 11 league games.

That has led to speculation that United and other top European clubs would be interested in signing Goncalves but it appears Sporting will not be willing to let him leave at this time.

One of the main reasons is that they only own 50% of the player, meaning they would only get half of the proceeds from any sale. The other 50% is owned by the midfielder’s former team Famalicao.

Were Sporting to secure him fully, they may then be more open to selling but, at this stage, United would have to trigger Goncalves’s buyout clause were they to be interested in snapping him up.