Arsenal could unwittingly help Manchester United to sign an England ace who’ll surpass club captain Bruno Fernandes in the salary stakes upon joining, according to a report.

Major changes to Man Utd’s playing personnel are on the horizon this summer. Sofyan Amrabat will be returned to Fiorentina once his underwhelming loan stint concludes. Elsewhere, Tom Heaton, Brandon Williams, Jonny Evans, Raphael Varane and Anthony Martial are all out of contract at season’s end.

Furthermore,  Alvaro Fernandez, Donny van de Beek, Hannibal Mejbri, Jadon Sancho, Mason Greenwood and Facundo Pellistri were all named by the Manchester Evening News last week as players who could leave United in permanent sales this summer.

New additions are wanted at centre-half, left-back, central midfield, the right wing and at striker.

Man Utd did land a new striker ahead of the current campaign when forking out an initial £64m to sign Rasmus Hojlund from Atalanta.

The 21-year-old struggled in the early going in the Premier League, though a streak of seven goals in six matches at the turn of the year provided a glimpse of what’s to come in future years.

Unfortunately for United, Hojlund has failed to find the net in his last four league matches – none of which the Red Devils have won.

Patchy form is inevitable for most young stars who aren’t yet the finished article. The problem for Man Utd is they don’t have a reliable back-up to either lighten the load on Hojlund or potentially play instead of the Dane.

Martial is the only other recognised striker in the first team and the Frenchman hasn’t produced the goods at United for many a year.

Furthermore, Fabrizio Romano has confirmed Martial will leave United at the end of the season as a free agent. United have opted against activating the player’s one-year option.

Man Utd’s Toney boost after Arsenal look elsewhere

A new striker is therefore required and according to the Sun, the Red Devils could move for Brentford and England hitman, Ivan Toney.

The 28-year-old has attracted interest from several elite sides including Arsenal. However, the Sun state the Gunners are souring on the idea of signing Toney and now look more favourably on the idea of signing Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyokeres.

Arsenal’s decision could pave the way for United to snap up Toney who is expected to leave Brentford this summer.

Toney to surpass captain Fernandes

Toney’s reported wage demands of £250,000-a-week is impossible for Brentford to match.

High salaries are no stranger to Man Utd, however, and if agreeing to those terms Toney would net £10,000-a-week more than captain Bruno Fernandes.

How much Toney will cost to prise out of Brentford is a matter of fervent debate.

Bees boss Thomas Frank previously cited a gigantic £100m figure when discussing a potential Toney exit in 2023.

But now aged 28 and poised to enter the final year of his deal, recent reports have listed a more manageable £30m-£40m price range.

Frank declared that estimate to be low when asked about those figures earlier in April. Reporter Ben Jacobs has cited an £80m sum, though Brentford may only be able to generate a fee of that size if multiple clubs engage in a bidding war.

If Arsenal have abandoned their pursuit and Man Utd are the only club in the mix, Toney could potentially be signed for closer to £40m than £80m.