Manchester United turn to 85 million French star after baulking at 'absurd' Neymar valuation

Manchester United is targeting 85 million ($106 million) French star striker Antoine Griezmann after Jose Mourinho rubbished rumours the club wants to make Neymar the Premier League's first quarter-of-a-billion-pound player.Speaking during a press conference on Thursday, United manager Mourinho said triggering Neymar's '200 million (176 million) buy-out clause is an "absurd" prospect."I always try to be objective and pragmatic with the clubs and ask the clubs for what can be given to me. Neymar is absurd. A club like Barcelona cannot and will not lose Neymar," he said, according to ESPN.But it seems Manchester United is determined to make a marquee attacking signing, given Zlatan Ibrahimovic is coming to the end of his career, Wayne Rooney is fading, and Marcus Rashford remains inexperienced.According to The Daily Telegraph, the club is looking to trigger a different buy-out clause ' that of Atletico Madrid striker Griezmann.The 26-year-old Frenchman, reportedly a close friend of United midfielder Paul Pogba, is one of the most in-demand attackers in European football thanks to his pace, shooting accuracy, and positional versatility.At 85 million, Griezmann's buy-out clause is also considerably lower than Neymar's, and it is a fee The Telegraph claim Mourinho is more comfortable triggering.The Telegraph write that Griezmann is United's "priority signing" but back-up options include powerful Everton striker Romelu Lukaku and AS Monaco forward Kylian Mbappe.An 85 million fee may seem exorbitant but it is 4 million shy of the world record sum United paid Juventus for Paul Pogba last season. It is also a sum United can afford as, in a recent note passed to clients, investment bank Credit Suisse forecast 2017 net player expenditure to be approximately 133 million.Join the conversation about this storyNOW WATCH: Here's what those white marks on your nails say about your health
Click here to read full news..