A bombshell report claims Manchester United’s move for Bryan Mbeumo has ‘stalled’ and two Premier League rivals are part of the reason why, and what United must do to rescue the deal has also been revealed.
Man Utd quickly identified the final third as their biggest area of weakness entering the summer window. Alejandro Garnacho, Marcus Rashford, Antony and Jadon Sancho all have approval to leave, while Matheus Cunha to the tune of £62.5m has been banked.
United’s aim was to quickly follow their Cunha coup up with the signing of Bryan Mbeumo.
The Brentford ace only has one year left on his contract, though the Bees hold a club option for an extra 12 months. In effect, he’s contracted for two more years and Brentford’s tough stance in negotiations with Man Utd reflects that.
Mbeumo has already informed all relevant parties he only wishes to join Man Utd if he does leave Brentford this summer. However, the issue holding up a deal is the transfer fee Keith Andrews’ side are demanding.
The initial belief was Brentford were using Cunha’s £62.5m switch as a guideline in discussions with Man Utd.
Accordingly, after seeing an opening offer worth £45m plus £10m in add-ons rejected, Man Utd returned with a second bid totalling £62.5m (£55m plus £7.5m in add-ons).
Unfortunately for United, that bid was rejected and per the latest fromi news, Brentford are now not only demanding a higher portion of the sum up front, but they want a bigger total fee too.
Explaining why, it was revealed Brentford have been taken aback by two pieces of transfer news this window.
Chelsea’s £60m (£55m plus £5m in add-ons) move for Joao Pedro and Newcastle’s £55m bid for Anthony Elanga have shocked Brentford.
The Bees are firm in the belief Mbeumo is a superior player to both Pedro and Elanga and he also boasts a far more proven track record in the Premier League.
Mbeumo scored more goals (20) in the Premier League last season than Pedro (16) and Elanga (17) got goals AND assists combined.
Factoring in Mbeumo’s eight assists too, his G/A total was a highly impressive 28 and vastly overshadows Pedro and Elanga.
Looking further back, Mbeumo returned figures of 17 G/A in the 2022/23 season and 16 G/A in the 2023/24 campaign, with the latter figure coming in just 25 appearances.
As such, i news explained the situation when stating they ‘understand that Joao Pedro’s £60m move to Chelsea and Newcastle’s £55m offer for Nottingham Forest winger Anthony Elanga have only served to strengthen the resolve of the Bees to demand well in excess of £60m for the forward up front.’
That was after the report had already insisted ‘while the initial feeling was that Brentford wanted Manchester United to match the £62.5m they spent on Matheus Cunha, they actually want more.’
What now for Man Utd?
The Red Devils have remained in contact with Brentford since their second bid was rebuffed.
Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano declared earlier on Monday that United’s “absolute focus” remains on forging a club-to-club agreement with Brentford.
However, i news described the move as now having ‘stalled’ and claimed the only way Man Utd can make a breakthrough is by ‘significantly’ increasing their bid.
And as mentioned, an increased third bid will only stand a chance of succeeding if it contains a higher total figure AND commits to paying at least £60m up front.
The report stressed that as of now, Man Utd have shown no indication they will abort the move. Nevertheless, it was claimed ‘it looks inevitable that the saga will drag on.’
Perhaps the most ominous line in the report came when i news declared: ‘Mbeumo will stay a part of Keith Andrews’ squad unless their valuation is met.’
That valuation – thanks in part to the free spending of other big clubs – is now higher than it was before the summer window opened.
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Bryan Mbeumo’s incredible 2024/25 season
Bryan Mbeumo stats 2024-25 Premier League: Appearances 38 Goals 20 Assists 8 Shots on target 41 Successful dribbles 52 Accurate crosses 49 Progressive passes 141 Progressive carries 130
Bryan Mbeumo stats in the 2024-25 Premier League