After an underwhelming start to the season in which initial positivity after an opening day defeat to Arsenal gave way to a turgid performance away at Fulham and a disastrous Carabao Cup exit at the hands of League Two Grimsby Town, Manchester United find themselves in dire need of reinforcements, notably in midfield with the ageing Casemiro, the positionally indisciplined captain Bruno Fernandes and the ineffective Manuel Ugarte seemingly cut through at will. Let’s look at three potential Manchester United transfer targets, both realistic and wishful thinking, for Ruben Amorim to beef up his options in the middle of the park.
Manchester United Transfer Targets: Three Options for Amorim
Manchester United Transfer Targets: Morten Hjulmand (Sporting Lisbon)
26-year-old Denmark international Hjulmand has been a staple of Portuguese outfit Sporting Lisbon’s midfield since arriving in the summer of 2023 to replace then PSG-bound current Manchester United player Manuel Ugarte. A dependable, safe and positionally astute option in the defensive midfield position, the former Lecce number 6 has experience of working under Amorim during their full season together in the Portuguese capital and would represent a conservative choice in the transfer market given his familiarity with United’s 3-4-2-1 system and reliability both in and out of possession, exemplified by a solid 91.6% pass success rate in Liga Portugal last season. A solid if unspectacular potential acquisition for the Red Devils.
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Angelo Stiller (VFB Stuttgart)
24-year-old Germany international Stiller has been earning rave reviews in his homeland following superlative performances in the holding midfielder role last season. The Bayern Munich academy graduate would combine the defensive and positional nous of Hjulmand with an offensive game that would help push the Red Devils up the pitch through his intelligent, line-breaking passes, a trait glaringly lacking in the likes of Casemiro and Ugarte. The statistics bear out the German’s versatility, with Stiller finding himself in the 91st percentile of Bundesliga midfielders for forward passes and the 98th percentile for progressive passes in the 2024/2025 campaign.
Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest)
Considering the difficulties Tottenham Hotspur experienced trying, and ultimately failing, to prise Morgan Gibbs-White away from Nottingham Forest and their notoriously prickly and combustible owner Evangelos Marinakis this summer, acquiring their freshly-crowned U21 European champion this summer would seem like something beyond a long shot, but that doesn’t mean that Manchester United shouldn’t be trying.
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A versatile all-rounder of a midfielder reminiscent of the likes of Steven Gerrard, Anderson starred for England U21s this summer and was a vitally important cog in Nuno Espirito Santo’s Forest side qualifying for Europe after finishing 7th last season. Indeed, the former Newcastle United man would bring thrust, energy and impressive technical ability to Amorim’s side, but appears to be content at the City Ground and would prove an extremely expensive signing if there were any chance of securing his signature.