Manchester United appear to be taking the 'Moneyball' approach to replacing Casemiro this summer, filling the Brazilian's void 'in the aggregate', rather than with a sole, statement arrival.
Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans have both arrived at Old Trafford for a combined fee of £85m, that figure still less than what was dished out to sign Paul Pogba in 2016.
While Premier League rivals have repeatedly broken through the £100m ceiling in recent years, there's been no such willingness at United to smash their record signing of a decade ago, with the club no longer the dominant financial force domestically.
Paul Pogba Manchester United record (timeless)
Of course, there is wisdom in not paying over the odds for new faces, after being burned so often in the past, but sometimes a premium fee is needed to secure premium talent.
Why it's the same old story in Man Utd's midfield search
INEOS, evidently, are trying to do things differently following a string of costly transfer mistakes in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era, although there's no getting away from the fact that they have been gazumped by their rivals this summer.
Leading midfield target, Elliot Anderson, has joined Manchester City on a £116m deal, while Tottenham Hotspur also powered past United to sign Mateus Fernandes, alongside their parallel move for Sandro Tonali.
With Bruno Guimaraes seemingly inching ever closer to joining Arsenal, that's at least four marquee Premier League midfielders that INEOS have missed out on, at a time when the Red Devils' midfield need is pressing.
Post-Pogba Man Utd Midfield Signings
Player
Tielemans
Santos
Ugarte
Mount
Amrabat
Sabitzer
Casemiro
Eriksen
Van de Beek
Fernandes
Fred
Matic
In previous years, supporters have also had to watch on as Chelsea twice broke their transfer record to sign Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo, while Declan Rice also joined Arsenal in 2023 on a £105m deal, after years of links to the Old Trafford side.
Rice, much like Harry Kane, looked like the type of signing that would've been almost guaranteed in Ferguson's pomp, yet United were simply unwilling or unable to stump up the required fee.
Declan-Rice-Solskjaer-Man-Utd-timeless
Indeed, it's been one missed chance after another in the midfield market, be it Jude Bellingham in 2020, or even Rodri in 2019, the Ballon d'Or-winning Spaniard heading elsewhere in Manchester instead.
A recurring theme has been that these high-profile players have all been tempted to move elsewhere, with INEOS wise to consider those who actually want to sign for the club this summer.
How Man Utd could sign their answer to Rice and Rodri
By all accounts, Rodri's future could actually play a part in United's midfield movements, with the World Cup winner's potential move to Real Madrid opening the door for Aurelien Tchouameni to join Michael Carrick's side.
Rodri-Spain-World-Cup
And yet, the Frenchman has only recently penned a new deal at the Bernabeu, while it's hard to shake the feeling that the Red Devils have been down this road before, having been strung along by Frenkie de Jong in 2022.
There's no obvious sense that Tchouameni is desperate to leave Madrid, nor desperate to join United, albeit with it an altogether different story with regard to Douglas Luiz.
Aston Villa's George Hemmings, Douglas Luiz and Harvey Elliott during training
As per Tuttosport, the Brazilian midfielder has his heart set on a Premier League return this summer, and considers an Old Trafford switch as his 'dream' move.
A swap deal involving Joshua Zirkzee has also been floated, with Luiz currently on the books at Juventus, after splitting his time last season on loan at Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa.
Now, considering it has been a wretched last two years for the 27-year-old, this might not appear the most exciting transfer, with Luiz starting just three Serie A games in 2024/25, alongside only 12 Premier League starts in 2025/26.
And yet, he had sealed his move to Turin in 2024 off the back of a fine first spell at Villa Park, having initially signed for the Midlands side from Man City in 2019.
douglas-luiz-jhon-duran
In 2022/23, for instance, Luiz scored and assisted 12 Premier League goals from his midfield berth, before contributing a further 14 in a standout 2023/24 campaign.
It was in that final year that pundit Nedum Onuoha even placed the South American alongside both Rodri and Rice as the cream of the crop in terms of top-flight midfielders.
“For me, Rodri, Declan Rice and Douglas Luiz have been the best of the best in midfield this season,” Onouha said on Final Score.
That praise isn't without merit, as Luiz also created ten 'big chances' to go alongside his nine goals and five assists, while averaging 1.5 key passes and an 89% pass accuracy rate per game.
For comparison, in that same season, Rice scored and assisted 15 goals, created nine 'big chances' and averaged 1.2 key passes per game, having boasted a 91% pass accuracy rate.
As for Rodri, the ex-Atletico Madrid man scored and assisted 17 and created eight 'big chances', while also averaging 1.5 key passes and a 92% pass accuracy per game.
Rodri-Manchester-City
Luiz was certainly in a similar ballpark at the time, looking like the complete midfielder, someone who acts as a real pillar in front of the back four, but is also such a creative weapon, be it from open play or primarily from set-pieces.
Speaking to talkSPORT in 2023, Jermaine Pennant even claimed that the then-Villa man "can do everything that Rice can do and better", with it something of a surprise that he hasn't kicked on as expected in Italy.
Douglas-Luiz-Aston-Villa
Perhaps a permanent return to the Premier League at Old Trafford could see him find his feet again, with there the makings of a stellar midfielder there for Carrick to nurture.
Yes, this again wouldn't be a signing that breaks the bank and really blows away any competition, but as those Rice and Rodri comparisons showcased, Luiz did look like a £100m player not too long ago.
Manchester United's Casemiro reacts Related
[Why Man Utd want to sign "the best DM in the world" to replace Casemiro](https://www.footballfancast.com/why-man-utd-want-to-sign-tchouameni-to-replace-casemiro/ "Why Man Utd want to sign "the best DM in the world" to replace Casemiro")
Manchester United have found their perfect replacement for Casemiro.