IT is set to be a summer of upheaval at Old Trafford.

Manchester United are currently plotting their next managerial move, with interim boss Ralf Rangnick set to step aside. There is also the matter of the most expensive signing in the club’s history, Paul Pogba, on course to be departing as a free agent, with the contract of academy graduate Jesse Lingard set to expire, too.

United’s long, unfulfilled quest for a top-quality defensive midfielder will continue, and there will likely be high-profile sales, as the contributions of several first-team regulars have come into question this term.

Amid all this, the latest reports suggest United are also in the hunt for a new striker. Here, we take a look at five options.

Harry Kane

Had Harry Kane gotten his way last summer, he’d already be playing in Manchester, only for United’s rivals.

Manchester City’s reported nine-figure offer for the England captain was rebuffed by Tottenham and the striker has remained, initially enduring a difficult campaign before finding form more recently.

Kane will turn 29 before the start of next season and his injury history is hardly without blemish, so questions will be raised over whether any potential suitors would be wise to splash the kind of exorbitant fee required to prise him from Tottenham.

But Kane has the name value to appeal to the Old Trafford money men and the top-level experience and temperament to handle the pressure inherent with leading the line for one of the world’s biggest clubs. And he remains one of the deadliest finishers in the game, with 22 goals to his name already in what has been a tumultuous season.

Victor Osimhen

Nigerian international Victor Osimhen has been earning rave reviews with high-flying Napoli in Serie A this season.

The 23-year-old has scored 15 goals in 25 all-competitions appearances for the Partenopei, building on a solid maiden campaign for the club last term, in which he netted 10 league goals in 24 outings.

The fast, skilful forward first grabbed the attention of scouts around Europe when he was voted the tournament’s second-best players as Nigeria win the U-17 World Cup in Chile in 2015.

An uneventful spell in Germany with Wolfsburg followed, but he shone in a single season with Charleroi in Belgium in 2018-19, scoring 20 goals and earning a switch to Lille, with whom he scored 18 goals the following season before Napoli swooped to sign him for a club-record €70m – potentially rising to €80m with add-ons.

As such, convincing Napoli to part with their prized asset will be an expensive endeavour. Aurelio De Laurentiis, the Serie A side’s hard-bargaining president, says he will only consider bids in excess of €100m.

Erling Haaland

With a £67m release clause kicking in this summer, every elite club in Europe is hoping to offer a new home to Erling Haaland.

The Borussia Dortmund striker is still only 21 but has already established himself as one of the best players in the world through his relentless goal-scoring. The Leeds-born Norway international has scored 80 goals in 82 games for BVB while also averaging close to a goal a game for his country.

The danger with United going all in for Haaland, though, is that competition for his signature is rife. There are rumours the youngster has already agreed terms with Manchester City – for whom his father, Alf-Inge Haaland, once played –  while Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Barcelona are all intent on making him their next star signing.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin

Over the previous two seasons, Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin elevated himself into the echelon of the Premier League best marksmen, peaking with a career-best return of 21 goals last term.

This season, though, the England striker has endured an arduous campaign – as have his club – as he has suffered with injuries and a loss of form. Absent between August and January, he is yet to score in eight appearances since his return.

But at his best, Calvert-Lewin has developed into and outstanding centre-forward and something of a throwback. The 25-year-old is outstanding in the air, holds up the ball well and links play smartly while possessing an impressive work ethic.

Everton are thought to value Calvert-Lewin at around £70m, but their asking price could tumble dramatically if Frank Lampard’s 17^th-placed strugglers succumb to the drop.

Lautaro Martinez

Argentine forward Lautaro Martinez formed one of Europe’s deadliest strike partnerships with Romelu Lukaku in the two seasons the pair spent together at Inter. And since Lukaku’s departure for Chelsea last summer, Martinez has continued to thrive.

The 24-year-old has scored 14 goals in 21 Serie A starts this term, adding to all-competitions tallies of 19 last season and 21 the year before. He has emerged as a star on the international scene, too, having scored 19 times in 37 appearances for Argentina, whom he helped to Copa America glory in 2021.

Martinez is reportedly valued at €70m, with Arsenal showing strong interest in bringing him to the Premier League. With his workrate and ability to act either as primary scorer or facilitator, he’d be an excellent fit at Old Trafford.

All Transfer Markets