Manchester United still hope to sign Carlos Balebaplaceholder image
Manchester United still hope to sign Carlos Baleba | Getty Images
Man Utd still hope to sign a midfielder in the final weeks of the summer transfer window.
Manchester United midfielder Toby Collyer has agreed to join West Bromwich Albion on a season-long loan. The 21-year-old has been the subject of serious loan interest all summer, with enquiries from roughly half the teams in the Championship over a possible transfer agreement.
United have been careful to ensure their youngsters are loaned out to clubs where they will play regularly in a system that suits their development plan. Former United defender Jonny Evans is the new head of loans and pathways and has sanctioned Collyer’s loan exit to another of his former clubs.
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Collyer made 13 appearances for the United first-team last season after he made his debut for the club in the Community Shield defeat to Man City. Ten of those appearances came after Ruben Amorim arrived at the club in November.
The decision to loan Collyer comes amid United's continued pursuit of Brighton ace Carlos Baleba. Amorim would like to add a mobile midfielder to his squad before deadline day, and the 21-year-old is viewed as the ideal fit for their tactical set-up. It is understood Baleba would be keen on an Old Trafford move this summer, though he is not expected to force his way out of Brighton and could quite easily stay there for at least another season.
Brighton have made it clear they do not intend to sell Baleba in the current window and will only sanction a sale if it matches their valuation of the player. Early indications suggest it will take a fee of at least £100 million, though that could be the overall value of the package, with a smaller initial transfer fee.
Speaking last month, Collyer opened the door to a summer loan exit but reiterated his priority was to become a future United midfielder. “I think first and foremost I want to be here and play as many games for Man United as possible,” Collyer said. “I’ll sit down with the manager and higher-ups and see what’s the best solution for that. The best way for me to develop, whether it’s stay here or go on loan.
“The end goal for me is to play as many minutes as possible here, hopefully starting every week. So yeah, I’ll sit down with them. Obviously, my feeling at this moment is I want to stay. I want to play as many games as possible. I’ve not really thought that far ahead to be honest. I’ll just see how the next few weeks go and then we’ll go over those conversations.
“I’ll be able to sit down with them and see what’s the best solution for that. But yeah, like you said there as well, obviously there’s not a lot of time in football. You need to get the results and get the team progressing. So that’s what we’re working towards at the minute.”
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