A report in Portugal has claimed that Manchester United have not started negotiations with Sporting Lisbon for the transfer of William Carvalho.

Speculation in yesterday's Daily Mail had suggested that the two parties had opened talks regarding the 21-year-old, who is believed to have a £37m release clause in his current contract.

However, A Bola - a newspaper with close connections to Sporting - have insisted that no discussions between the clubs have taken place yet.

United manager David Moyes is thought to have had the midfielder scouted on numerous occasions this season.