Sources: Manchester United secure player agreement as Liverpool make costly error

Manchester United have agreed personal terms with Jadon Sancho and are closing in on an agreement with Borussia Dortmund over a transfer fee.

We reported on Friday evening that United were close to agreeing personal terms with the player and while there are still some detail to iron out, there should be no issues over his contract.

The Mirror now reports that personal terms have been agreed and although the two clubs have agreed on a fee, there is still a disagreement over the payment structure as Dortmund want a large portion paid upfront.

£81.5million is the fee that Simon Mullock claims is being demanded by Dortmund but we understand that add-ons bring the valuation closer to £90million but for Liverpool, their failure to sign the player or even be in the running stems from a lesson that United learned the hard way last summer.

Anfield Central is told by one source that Liverpool believed they had the duration of the EUROs to contemplate a deal for Sancho but after United were left looking silly when they were turned away by Dortmund after missing their deadline last summer, they have acted proactively this summer.

The Old Trafford side has been sluggish and slow to react in the transfer market in the past and while it's taken them a year and potentially cost them a shot at the Premier League title, they've taken a big step towards signing Sancho and now Liverpool look a bit silly.

Despite what some will say, the Reds aren't bankrupt and they did want to sign Sancho but their hesitation cost them and they will now need to look to alternatives but realistically, there aren't many players out there that fit the same profile as the Englishman.

Signing Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland would require Liverpool to shatter their transfer record by a huge margin and beyond them, there aren't many players that Jurgen Klopp would call 'difference makers.'

In the long run, it's a major loss but so long as Liverpool use this as a lesson and prepare to sign someone like Mbappe next summer when his contract runs out, it won't prove too costly but allowing Manchester United to sign a player that is capable of taking them to the next level could prove to be damaging in hindsight.