Manchester United must pay €100m clause to sign Andrea Belotti - Torino
Manchester United will have to meet Andrea Belotti's buyout clause if they want to sign the striker this summer, Torino president Urbano Cairo has told Gazetta dello Sport.
Belotti, 23, has been linked with a move to Old Trafford as Jose Mourinho searches for a striker to replace the injured Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
The Italy international has a clause in his contract, which runs until 2021, that means he would be allowed to leave Torino if a club outside Italy offered €100 million.
Cairo said that would be the only way in which Belotti, who scored 26 goals in Serie A last season, would sign for United this summer.
He said: "I'm not thinking about selling Belotti. Belotti is my player, we only renewed his contract recently. Our objective is to keep him.
"After that, there is a release clause that would make me obliged to sell him, providing someone came in with €100m from abroad.
"Let's see. I haven't talked to him yet because he is currently with the national team. We will see how things go, but our intention would be to keep him."
Belotti is one of a number of strikers to have been linked with United, and has also been reported to be interesting AC Milan.
But Gianluca Petrachi, Torino's sporting director, said the club had yet to receive any concrete offers.
Petrachi added: "On paper, Torino do not want to sell Belotti, but you all know how the market works.
"If a club were to come to us with a big offer, we would have to consider it. Either the big clubs come now or they don't come at all.
"It's unlikely that a big club is willing to spend €100m in August. If Milan want him, they have to pay a big price for him and, to this day, no big offers from Milan have arrived."
NPFL Wrap: Leaders Plateau United win away
Surprise league leaders Plateau United picked up the sole away win of the round against Sunshine Stars in Akure on Wednesday to consolidate top spot, while El-Kanemi Warriors surrendered their perfect home record in Maiduguri.
Sunshine Stars 1 - 2 Plateau United
League leaders Plateau United continued their quest for a surprise maiden title when they took a priceless second away win in Akure against Sunshine Stars, who remain 17th on the table.
Two second-half goals for the visitors cancelled out Ezekiel Thompson's 34th-minute strike for the home team.
El-Kanemi Warriors 1 - 1 Enugu Rangers
Enugu Rangers completed mission impossible as they held the hitherto invincible El-Kanemi Warriors to a draw in Maiduguri.
Indeed, the home side were fortunate as an 86th-minute effort from Aghahowa Otakho saved their blushes on the day.
The result ended hopes of a 25th-successive home win for Warriors, who remain in third, while Rangers, who only became the first away team since March 2013 to earn a point at the Maiduguri Township Stadium, are 14th on the log.
Lobi Stars 3 - 1 MFM FC
Local hero Tony Okpotu netted a hat-trick in eleven first-half minutes for Lobi Stars as they condemned MFM FC to an eighth away league loss of the season at the Aper Aku Stadium, Makurdi.
The hat-trick was Okpotu's second of the season as he becomes the first player in the league to achieve this feat, while simultaneously helping Lobi Stars move into fifth.
MFM FC have now dropped to fourth having lost three in their last five.
FC Ifeanyi Ubah 2 - 0 ABS FC
Goals in either half from foreign imports Yaya Kone and Seka Pascal handed FC Ifeanyi Ubah a comfortable home win against ABS FC.
The home team got back to winning ways following their defeat at the weekend, earning a win which sees them climb into second.
ABS FC, meanwhile, drop to 12th and are still waiting for a first away win of the season.
Gombe United 1 - 1 Enyimba
An 80th-minute goal from Suleiman Usman salvaged a point for 18th-place Gombe United at home against heavyweights Enyimba, who continue to flatter to deceive.
The People's Elephant went ahead in the 55th minute through Ikechukwu Ibenegbu's goal, but their late capitulation leaves them in seventh.
Nasarawa United 2 - 0 Katsina United
Nasarawa United improved their league standing -- moving up to eighth on the log -- thanks to a comfortable home win against Katsina United, who are five points below them.
Adamu Hassan made amends for his first-half penalty miss by netting a goal in each half, with the hitman's ninth and tenth goals of the season putting him firmly in the race for the top scorer gong.
Niger Tornadoes 1 - 0 Rivers United
Rivers United continued their miserable away form this season when they lost 1-0 at Niger Tornadoes, who nabbed all three points via Abdullahi Wakili's 11th-minute penalty.
The away team were blunt in attack, offering little offensively, while Tornadoes continue to rely on their relatively good home form to move up to sixth.
Shooting Stars 0 - 0 Kano Pillars
The big game of the week in Ibadan involving two traditional teams -- Shooting Stars and Kano Pillars -- failed to produce fireworks, with the game ending in a drab goalless draw.
Pillars picked up a point on the road which pushes them into 11th place, while Stars are rooted in 19th, and their coach, Fatai Amoo, could face a battle to keep hold of his job.
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