Manchester United will be forming their plans for the summer transfer window with midfield a key area needing investment
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim will be looking to add a midfielder to his squad in the summer transfer window
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim will be looking to add a midfielder to his squad in the summer transfer window
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Manchester United will be under no illusions about the need to strengthen their midfield in the summer transfer window. January may be just around the corner, but the money needed to snap up a midfielder who could make the Reds better will not be spent in the mid-season window by Ineos.
Instead, they will need to bide their time and forge a plan in how to move forward. Last summer, MEN Sport understands United enquired about the availability of Carlos Baleba. Brighton and Hove Albion responded with a price tag of more than £100m and that ended their interest - for the time being.
From a Reds perspective, Baleba was a player they felt they could approach next summer due to Casemiro still having a year to run on his current deal. There was disappointment at not adding a midfielder to the ranks but there was also an understanding that United could not strengthen every position in their team.
Looking back now, it seems United dodged a bullet waiting a year for Baleba. When he visited Old Trafford for the first time since the links to United in October, the Cameroonian struggled to perform to anywhere near his best - like we have seen most of this season.
The Reds found plenty of joy through the middle of the pitch and when Baleba was eventually substituted, his downbeat reaction said it all. He did not look like a player carrying a price tag of £100m+. Since then his manager, Fabian Hurzeler, has tried everything in his power to ease the expectation surrounding his midfielder.
"Don’t put Carlos Baleba under pressure and say ‘you must play well’ because of course he wants to play well," Hurzeler said in November. "It is about the small steps. It is about how he asks for the ball, the positioning he has when he receives the ball. How often he is switched on in trying to react when we lose the ball."
"I think it has gone now. We are now four months into the season so we can’t speak about these rumours any more," the Brighton boss added on the United links. "It’s about being a Brighton player, it’s about performing well here and it is about getting him back to his best level.
"Avoid the noise, avoid all the rumours and focus on the things you can influence and the things you can do best and that’s football." Despite Hurzeler's wishes to move on, Baleba has now addressed the talk and it should be seen as a warning to Ruben Amorim.
Carlos Baleba
Carlos Baleba has struggled for consistency for Brighton this season
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When asked if the United rumours hindered him, Baleba told Sky Sports: "I don't think it affected me negatively, but I had a lot of pressure on me. When I started this season, I wanted to show the same performances as last season.
"Every day I try to work hard and get back to my level. Did I put too much pressure on myself? Yes, I think so, but I think it's good.
"It's good for me, because now I have to get through this slightly stressful period, get back on the horse and continue working hard."
Baleba's determination to get back on track should be applauded but the admission about struggling to handle the pressure must be a red light to Amorim. In their recent history, the Reds have been characterised by players who simply could not compete to their best under the pressure of United.
The history of the club demands a certain level of performance and too often United's post-Sir Alex Ferguson crop have not been able to deal with it. The pressure you feel at Brighton is nowhere near the same level as you experience at Old Trafford.
If you are wanting to make the step up to United, you need to be showing much more than what Baleba has done this season. This is not to mention what you need to show if your price tag is more than £100m.
United need players who have shown time and time again they can handle pressure. Baleba is not doing that this campaign and, for now at least, this is why the Reds should avoid him.