Manchester United are “ready to make a move” to sign Bologna striker Joshua Zirkzee, according to Sport Italia.

The TV station claim that the Red Devils are currently in “pole position” to buy the Dutchman ahead of the summer transfer window.

It is important to note that Zirkzee’s previous club Bayern Munich do have a buyback option, which means they can re-sign him at the end of the season for €40m (£34m).

However, Bologna believe that the Bundesliga side will not trigger the clause and they will be free to sell their player to another team.

Sport Italia report that the Serie A club will hold out for around €50m (£43m) for Zirkzee, who only made the switch to Italy for €8.5m last August.

Isn’t there also a release clause in Zirkzee’s contract?

Reports in the German media have suggested that, in addition to the buyback clause that Bayern have, there is a release fee set at €40m (£34m).

In their report, Sport Italia make no mention of the latter and they believe that Bologna will be able to hold out for a higher sum for Zirkzee.

United will face competition for the player

In addition to Bayern, it is believed that both Arsenal and AC Milan could also enter the race for the 22-year-old’s signature.

Zirkzee hasn’t exactly been prolific since joining Bologna, having hit the back of the net just 8 times in 22 appearances, but many clearly believe he has great potential.

Considering that he is Dutch, there will be some suspicions that United are pursuing him at the behest of manager Erik ten Hag, who has regularly looked to his home country for signings. The interest from other high-profile teams does, however, suggest that there is more to it than that. From the sound of things, though, there won’t be any movement on this transfer until the summer.