Manchester United are interested in signing Juventus and France midfielder Adrian Rabiot this summer, according to The Athletic's David Ornstein.

The Lowdown: Midfield woeful v Brighton

Erik ten Hag's first Premier League match in charge of United proved to be a disaster on Sunday, as Brighton left Old Trafford with a deserved 2-1 victory.

There were poor performances all over the pitch but Scott McTominay and Fred were certainly among the worst, struggling badly in midfield and failing to complete a single key pass between them, with Roy Keane critical of both players in his analysis for Sky Sports.

There is no doubt that a new central midfielder is needed before the end of the current transfer window, and it looks as though United have a new target.

The Latest: United eye up Rabiot move

Taking to Twitter on Monday, The Athletic's Ornstein confirmed that the Red Devils are interested in Rabiot, who has one year remaining on his current Juventus deal.

However, United could face a dilemma as to whether they move for the Frenchman in tandem with their ongoing pursuit of Frenkie de Jong, or wait until they know one way or another over the Barcelona man.

In sharing a link to his corresponding article for The Athletic, Ornstein tweeted:

"EXCL: Man Utd United working on deal to sign Adrien Rabiot from Juventus. #MUFC must decide if they proceed irrespective of ongoing De Jong pursuit or await outcome of that before deciding. 27yo France midfielder has 1yr on #Juve contract."

The Verdict: Right area, wrong option

The midfield must be strengthened by Ten Hag in the next few weeks but Rabiot feels like a peculiar target, considering that he has produced scant attacking output in recent years, also suffering multiple injury problems.

At 27, he also doesn't exactly represent the long-term future, while his attitude has also been questioned down the years, and United have had problems in recent months regarding dressing room disharmony.

A move for De Jong is now looking unlikely for United, but they need to be looking at a better option than Rabiot, who only averaged 0.7 key passes per game in Serie A last season - fewer than Fred (one) and McTominay (0.8).