Ronald Koeman is resigned to the departure of Morgan Schneiderlin before the start of the season though the Southampton manager has warned Manchester United the France worldwide will not be signed on the cheap.
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The French midfielder missed training today due to illness, but it is thought that he will be attending the pre-season camp in Austria with the Saints.
“Two weeks ago we had a bid from Man United”, Koeman said.
“I hope that if there is any business that it will be soon”, he added.
As reported by the Guardian, United have already offered £20million for the midfielder and are preparing to increase that with manager Louis van Gaal keen to sign the player before the club jets off on their summer tour. But it’s important for the player to do a good pre-season.
Alderweireld played 28 times for the Saints on loan last season with an option to make the deal permanent for £6.8m.
Reports have suggested it was as much as £20m, with the club on the lookout for £5m more than that.
“Of course there will be interest in the player”, said Koeman.
These interviews came out in the press following last night’s reporting that Southampton would consider legal action against Atletico Madrid if our deal wasn’t honoured and he completed a move elsewhere.
Despite seeing an initial bid from United rejected by Southampton, Koeman believes that Schneiderlin’s future will be resolved in the next few days. “It [the bid] wasn’t enough”, Koeman said.
“[Head of football development] Les Reed is working on that situation”.
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“Having said that, there’s not only James, there are plenty of the other lads here who I have played with for England and Manchester United, so hopefully that will help me settle in quickly”.
