Manchester United are willing to pay Villarreal €50m (£42.8m) to sign centre-back Pau Torres, according to Marca.

The Lowdown: Torres linked with United

The Red Devils were name-checked with an interest in Torres by transfer expert Fabrizio Romano towards the end of April, who stated that the Red Devils and their crosstown rivals Manchester City were ‘interested’ in the 25-year-old, who has a release clause of €55m-€60m (£47.1m-£51.4m).

[web_stories_embed url="https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-man-utd-updates-2/" title="Latest Man Utd updates!" poster="" width="360" height="600" align="none"]

Erik ten Hag is seemingly keen to bolster his defensive ranks, with Ajax's Jurrien Timber also of interest at Old Trafford.

The Latest: Torres transfer update

Marca shared an update regarding Torres and United on Monday afternoon. They claimed that the Red Devils, who remain owned by the Glazers, are willing to pay Villarreal €50m (£42.8m) for the Spain international.

The report adds that Ten Hag wants a ball-playing centre-back, with Torres fitting perfectly into his plans.

The Verdict: Smart move?

It appears as if United are looking at lowering the cost of a possible deal and are willing to knock off €5m to €10m (£4.3m-£8.6m) of the defender’s release clause. However, you’d like to think that if push came to shove, the club would be willing to activate Torres’ release clause.

The Spain international, who was hailed as 'sensational' by his national team boss Luis Enrique, appears to be entering the prime years of his career, with a career-high Transfermarkt valuation.

He now has experience of playing in the Champions League and for his country on a regular basis, and given that he is also wanted by Pep Guardiola, Ten Hag could strike an early blow to United's closest rivals shortly after arriving in England.

In other news: Man Utd and Ten Hag launch 'important offer' to sign 'the future' of football along with De Jong.