Manchester United's hopes of forcing Everton to accept a cut-price fee for England defender Jarrad Branthwaite could be scuppered by the emergence of Arsenal as transfer rivals.
United had an opening bid of £35million for Branthwaite rejected by Everton on Friday. The Toffees value the centre-half at between £70m-£80m and are determined to hold out for a fee closer to their price tag.
United are set to return with an increased offer but MEN Sport understands that they don't believe the defender is worth that asking price.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has already indicated that United won't be forced into paying over the odds for players, and that the days of huge transfer spends are long gone.
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