Robbie Walls
A handful of top Serie A sides are interested in signing Manchester United midfielder Juan Mata this summer, with the Spaniard set to be available on a free transfer.
The former Valencia man was plucked from Chelsea by United in a £37.1m deal in January 2014 and has since gone on to help the club lift the FA Cup, Carabao Cup and Europa League in his six-and-a-half year spell at Old Trafford.
The diminutive playmaker has scored 50 goals for the club in 267 appearances thus far, that milestone goal coming against Brighton in the League Cup earlier this season.
While United are enjoying a relatively positive campaign and find themselves in second place in the Premier League table, Mata has played a bit-part role this term, with much of his game time restricted to cup competitions.
The 32-year-old’s current deal is set to expire this summer, meaning he is available to move on for free at the end of the season, the Sun reporting that Serie A sides Juventus, Roma and Inter are all interested in signing the player.
The World Cup winner initially looked set to leave the club in 2019, although was persuaded to stay by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and signed a new two-year deal to remain in Manchester.
While that deal includes the option to extend his contract by an extra year, his lack of game time this season may see both the Red Devils and Mata agree to part company this summer.
As for the interested parties, Inter are understood to be keen on bringing the midfielder to Italy, manager Antonio Conte having already brought the likes of Romelu Lukaku, Alexis Sanchez and Ashley Young to the San Siro from Old Trafford.
As for Roma, they have recently shown they are not afraid to bring in players in their thirties, with former Premier League men Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pedro both impressing this season in the Italian capital, while Juventus are in need of a more creative presence in midfield under new man Andrea Pirlo.
Although Inter are reportedly already making moves for Mata, their Serie A rivals are more likely to wait until the summer when the player becomes a free agent.
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