Mehdi Benatia desperate to force through Roma exit

Benatia is available to the highest bidder, but time is running out to force through his exit.

Manchester United's top defensive target Mehdi Benatia's desperation to force through a summer transfer has left his Roma team-mates furious, with the Moroccan defender's attitude viewed as selfish in a stand-off which now looks certain to result in the Giallorossi sanctioning his sale before next Monday.

Benatia's fantastic debut season with Roma has alerted Europe's top clubs to the potential signing of a top central defender, an increasingly rare commodity in the modern game.

Roma want €30 million and are still waiting for either Bayern Munich, Manchester United or Chelsea to meet that lofty valuation of a player they signed for just €13m last summer, but Corriere dello Sport believe Benatia's exit is now inevitable and will be forced through next week.

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Where next for Benatia?

Roma chiefs were confident of keeping Benatia at the start of this summer and even offered the 27-year-old a bumper pay rise as reward for his efforts last season, which helped a revitalised team keep a very impressive 20 clean sheets.

Benatia's head has been turned though and Roma are now set to the latest victim of player power at the highest level, with tensions over his future described by Corriere as "dangerous" and at risk of destabilising a squad with their eyes on the Scudetto this season.

That stance has created the grounds for a late bidding war for Benatia's services, but if Man United are seriously interested in landing a new defensive linchpin they are certainly taking their sweet time to make it happen.

Arsenal and Chelsea are also believed to be monitoring his situation very closely, but Bayern look United's most likely rivals after holding talks with Benatia's agent Moussa Sissoko in Munich earlier this week.

Both European giants are running out of time to get this deal over the line and are yet to meet Roma's valuation for the player, but it still looks very likely that Benatia will leave the Eternal City before the transfer window slams shut.