Chelsea and Man Utd must pay £35m for La Liga starlet

Chelsea and Manchester United have both been reportedly told to stump up £35m if they want to sign Aymeric Laporte.

The Premier League duo, who currently sit 12th and third in the standings respectively, have been monitoring the young defender’s progress at Athletic Bilbao this term.

The 21-year-old, who broke through the club’s youth set-up and into the first-team fold back in 2012, has scored one goal in 15 appearances in all competitions this season for the La Liga outfit.

Laporte, a France Under-21 international, is also thought to be interesting FC Barcelona, who are still trying to fill the void left by Carles Puyol last year.

With Red Devils boss Louis van Gaal failing to sign a new centre-half during the summer and Jose Mourinho’s Blues unable to tempt England’s John Stones to Stamford Bridge, Bilbao have seemingly slapped a £35m price tag on their next transfer target.