United's first-choice goalkeeper faces a race to be fit for the start of the season
Andre Onana is set to remain No 1 goalkeeper at Manchester United next season – and will travel with the club on their pre-season tour even though he is injured.
Onana suffered a hamstring injury as the United squad returned to training, meaning that Altay Bayindir will be the No 1 choice between the posts for their tour to the US.
United had been looking at a variety of new goalkeepers, including Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez, to replace Onana, whose time in England has been plagued by high-profile errors.
However, with senior figures feeling other areas of the squad are in more dire need of revamping, The i Paper understands Onana will almost certainly, if fit, be in the side for United’s Premier League curtain raiser against Arsenal on 17 August.
United will remain in the market for a goalkeeper over the next six weeks.
United hold an interest in Aston Villa keeper Emiliano Martinez (Photo: Getty)
If the club does move for a new stopper, sources say they will target younger, more inexperienced options, to provide cover as No 2 to Onana.
Should one of their prime targets, like Martinez, become available for the right price, there will be a change of tack, but Villa are understood to value their Argentine goalkeeper way higher than United do, so any transfer is a long way off completion.
Should Bayindir leave Old Trafford – something the Turkey international is considering in order to secure more first-team football – United’s hand will be forced, even though 21-year-old Radek Vítek is highly-rated by the club.
Vitek is set to travel with the team and is set to start in their first game of the tour in New Jersey on 27 July, with Onana out.
It was initially feared the Cameroon international would be out for up to eight weeks, but sources said he has responded well to early treatment and could be back within four.
The plan is for Onana to still travel on the US tour, even if he is unlikely to feature, further emphasising the important role Ruben Amorim feels Onana, a popular figure in the United dressing room, can play.
The player himself is understood to have a great relationship with Amorim and has never been given any indication he is falling out of favour.
Alejandro Garnacho’s services are no longer required at Old Trafford (Photo: Getty)
Money is so tight, with the Premier League’s profitability and sustainability regulators looking on, largely due to United struggling to offload any of their wantaway stars.
It was thought Alejandro Garnacho would be swiftly moved out the door, with Napoli long-standing admirers.
Talks have been held between United and the Serie A champions, but there remains a gap in valuation.
The Argentine has been told he does not have to report back for pre-season training to give him and his advisors more time to find a new club.
Reports of interest from Saudi Arabia will not be entertained, The i Paper understands – Garnacho wants to remain at a top European team.
Marcus Rashford is another who is eyeing a move to the continent.
Everything seemed to be falling in place to secure his dream move to Barcelona, with the Catalans’ other top target, Nico Williams, signing a new contract to stay at Athletic Bilbao and Liverpool refusing to budge on parting with Luis Diaz.
Sporting director Deco has publicly admitted the club’s interest in Rashford, but the La Liga giants’ financial problems make any deal difficult to sanction until they can shift some players in the opposite direction.
Barca are interested in taking Rashford on loan – a deal that would not be United’s preference.
Rashford trained alone in isolation this week at United’s Carrington training base, despite being told not to report back.
It is understood there is no animosity towards United from Rashford, despite him being stripped of his No 10 shirt while still being contracted, and he would be willing to be reintegrated into the group, including for the pre-season tour, if Amorim sanctions such a move.
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