Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Jason Wilcox in the stands
(Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Manchester United fans have been implicitly told to forget about Aurelien Tchouameni, who appears to be out of their budget.
This summer, the Red Devils have been refusing to indulge in bidding wars or spend astronomical figures on new signings.
So despite their dire need for new midfielders, they watched on as Manchester City bought Elliot Anderson for a whopping £116 million while Spurs brought in Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali for a combined £185 million.
On the other hand, United have been much more restrained in their spending, buying Andrey Santos from Chelsea for £48 million and activating Youri Tielemans’s £35 million release clause.
Man Utd not expected to buy Aurelien Tchouameni
After making two relatively cost-efficient signings in midfield, some sources tipped MUFC to break the bank on a marquee third signing.
Several reports in England and Spain have identified Man Utd as the frontrunners in the race for Tchouameni, who could be placed on the market if Real Madrid manage to recruit Manchester City star Rodri.
After all, Tchouameni has been pinpointed by many as the ‘perfect’ Casemiro successor, having already replaced the Brazilian in the Spanish capital four years ago.
But according to Sky Sports News correspondent Danyal Khan, the Premier League giants are unlikely to spend a large figure on another midfielder, as they prefer to allocate some of their remaining transfer fund to buy a left-back (potentially Lewis Hall).
“The midfield has been dealt with. There are suggestions as to whether they will go for another midfielder. I think they would like to, but it will be very much dependent on how the market develops,” said the journalist.
“I don’t think we’ll see another £60-70m signing in the midfield; it’ll be a lot lower than that, but I also think United will also look at left-back.”
What are Man Utd’s alternative solutions in midfield?
While Sky didn’t expressly rule out Tchouameni’s arrival, a figure that is ‘a lot lower’ than £60 million certainly wouldn’t be enough to sway Real Madrid.
Therefore, Man Utd would have to turn to alternative targets, unless they plan to simply back Mason Mount, who has been performing admirably in a deeper role alongside Santos in pre-season.
Despite the Englishman’s summer exploits, United would ideally add another body to the department, someone capable of adding energy and pace to the middle of the park.
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Percentiles Duel% Poss won Prog carries Fwd passes Fwd pass% Key passes Prog passes Minutes
A. Tchouaméni 97.2 76.6 27.6 95.8 98.9 33.3 89.3 2854
M. Koné 57.6 60.7 72.9 86.6 95.6 55.5 61.6 2659
T. Adams 48.1 88.6 36.8 75.2 66.2 12.3 33.3 1952
M. Mount 20.1 32.7 21.8 41.4 72.0 58.1 66.9 1150
(Stats via DataMB)
Manu Kone might be among the most popular profiles, but it remains to be seen if the allocated budget would be enough to strike a deal with Roma, as the Frenchman’s real valuation remains somewhat undefined.
Bournemouth and USMNT stalwart Tyler Adams represents a cheaper option, but the Cherries are reportedly refusing to sell him for £35 million. Nevertheless, an improved bid should do the trick.
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