Manchester United are among a host of clubs exploring a potential loan deal for Paris Saint-Germain and France striker Randal Kolo Muani.

Ruben Amorim is eager to bolster his goal-shy attack this month and Kolo Muani is understood to be one of the forwards United are considering a move for.

There is uncertainty over the futures of Marcus Rashford and Joshua Zirkzee but it is thought any move to bring in a new attacker is not necessarily contingent on one of those players leaving Old Trafford this month.

Borussia Dortmund, AC Milan and Juventus are all said to be looking into the viability of a loan deal for Rashford, whose £325,000-a-week contract – which has 3½ years to run – is a complicating factor for suitors. But it is still unclear at this stage what kind of deal would be palatable financially to United.

Rashford’s brother and representative, Dwaine Maynard, is believed to have flown to Italy on Tuesday to meet with Milan and discuss options.

Milan and Juventus, along with Tottenham Hotspur and clubs in Germany, are also looking at Kolo Muani, whom United considered signing before they bought Rasmus Hojlund from Atalanta for £72 million in August 2023.

Juventus have also been linked with Zirkzee, although the indications so far are that the Netherlands striker would prefer to stay and fight for his place at Old Trafford.

PSG paid Eintracht Frankfurt a projected £76.4 million for Kolo Muani just weeks after Hojlund’s arrival at United but he has struggled to make an impact with the French champions.

The 26-year-old has managed only 11 goals in 54 appearances for PSG, experiencing a forgettable debut campaign and suffering from a lack of regular playing time. He has just two goals in 14 appearances in all competitions this season.

Kolo Muani is eager for more time on the pitch and there is thought to be an acceptance on PSG’s part that he needs to be playing more, which could open the door for a loan move for the second half of the season.

United scored twice in an impressive draw with Premier League leaders Liverpool on Sunday but have just 23 goals in 20 league games this term and finding the net has been a serious problem for several seasons now.

Past transfer target among best January options on market

Amorim feels he needs more strikers adept at timing runs in behind defences and this is one of Kolo Muani’s strong suits. United looked long and hard at the France forward when he was at Eintracht Frankfurt before deciding Hojlund was a better long-term investment.

Kolo Muani did much of his best work at Frankfurt as an inside-forward drifting in from the left but he is comfortable in a number of positions across the front and has pace and strength that will appeal to Amorim. The 26-year-old does not have the most finesse, is not the best passer of the ball and has struggled to win over PSG coach Luis Enrique.

But United are unlikely to have the money to buy a striker such as Sporting’s Viktor Gyokeres in January and Kolo Muani is considered one of the most versatile high-profile forwards expected to be available this month, hence the interest in him from an array of European clubs.

United have found goals hard to come by for far longer than their fans would care to remember and, with serious doubts over the future of Rashford, Zirkzee so far struggling and concerns over Hojlund’s ability to translate his form in Europe into the Premier League, Amorim wants more options in attack.