World Cup winner 'flattered' by Man Utd interest as summer transfer talks revealed

Manchester United contacted Atletico Madrid star Antoine Griezmann over a potential transfer in the summer, it has been revealed.

According to Sky Sports, United made contact with Griezmann's representatives to sound out whether the France international would be interested in a move to Old Trafford.

It is claimed that football director John Murtough and former recruitment consultant Tom Keane made calls to arrange a meeting with Griezmann's camp, during a trip to Spain to finalise their deal for Casemiro.

At the time, Griezmann was on loan at Atletico from Barcelona.

Griezmann's future was the subject of speculation, with the French forward restricted to an unusual role from the bench at the start of the current campaign.

Due to a clause that stipulated a permanent buy option of €40m (£35.2m) would be triggered if he played half of the minutes he was available, Griezmann was primarily only used after the 60-minute mark in matches.

The unusual situation was eventually resolved in October, when Griezmann permanently re-signed for Atletico on a four-year deal after Barcelona agreed to reduce their asking price.

Griezmann 'flattered' by Man Utd interest

Sky Sports claim Griezmann was "flattered" by United's interest in him at the time and considered the Premier League as an exciting challenge.

However, his priority was making his transfer to Atleti permanent.

Griezmann would later impress at the World Cup in Qatar, playing a key role for defending champions France, who finished as runners-up to Argentina.

Enquiries for Griezmann are said to have continued this season but the 31-year-old is happy in Madrid and would only consider leaving Atletico if manager Diego Simeone departs the club.

United remain in the market for a long-term replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo, having signed Wout Weghorst on loan from Burnley for the remainder of the season.

Tottenham striker Harry Kane is reportedly on a shortlist of attacking targets, which also includes Napoli forward Victor Osimhen and RB Salzburg star Benjamin Sesko, who will join RB Leipzig in the summer window.