Manchester United have agreed personal terms with Manu Kone, though Sky Sports are adamant the Frenchman isn’t the only midfielder United are looking at, with ‘movement’ now made for a Premier League destroyer.
Man Utd entered the summer transfer window aiming to sign three new midfielders. Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans have been banked, with the Red Devils now prioritising a more defensive-minded option for arrival number three.
Real Madrid’s Aurelien Tchouameni is a dream target, though the Frenchman recently signed a new contract at Real Madrid.
Reports in the media over the past 72 hours have claimed a blockbuster transfer may still be possible, but TEAMtalk’s understanding of the situation is neither Real or Tchouameni want to part ways.
As such, Man Utd must look elsewhere, and according to Corriere dello Sport, Man Utd have reached an agreement in priniciple regarding personal terms with Manu Kone.
The France international, 25, plays for Roma where he’s valued in the £40m-£50m bracket.
But according to Sky Sports, United fans should keep an eye on Brighton’s Carlos Baleba too.
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Man Utd to sign Carlos Baleba or Manu Kone?
Taking to X, their reporter, Danyal Khan, explained: ‘Manu Kone and Carlos Baleba being strongly considered by #mufc as third midfield signing of the summer.
‘Club have made movement recently in revisiting a potential move for Baleba but no official club-to-club contact has been made yet.
‘United have also tentatively explored move for Kone with fee expected to be lower than Baleba but any thought of imminent move is premature.
‘Both continue to be on a long list of targets and club not in a rush as they look at other areas to strengthen too.’
On Wednesday, our insider, Graeme Bailey, reaffirmed that in a perfect world, United would simply pull the trigger on Baleba.
“What I am hearing is they want someone who can really help them defensively,” Bailey told us.
“In an ideal world they’d just sign Carlos Baleba. They absolutely love his game. Yes, he didn’t have his best season, but they still believe he’d be an outstanding fit for Manchester United.”
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The reason why a move for Baleba hasn’t yet occurred is an obvious one – a difference of opinion regarding the transfer fee.
Bailey continued: “United believe Baleba is worth somewhere around the £50m mark, especially after what they considered an inconsistent campaign. Brighton couldn’t disagree more,” continued Bailey.
“Even before Elliot Anderson became the most expensive British player ever (now surpassed by Morgan Rogers), Brighton were talking about figures well north of £75m and closer to £100m. That immediately puts him outside United’s thinking.”
Clearly, either Brighton or Man Utd must compromise on the fee involved if the Baleba deal is to be revived.
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