It is not the greatest of times to be a Manchester United fan.
The Red Devils, the most successful and iconic club in England and one of the most recognisable football institutions in the world, is now a team that young players want to steer clear of.
The 20-time Premier League champions are currently looking for a replacement centreback for the veteran Raphaël Varane, who departed Old Trafford as a free agent at the end of last season. They could also lose Swedish centreback Victor Lindelöf who is considering his exit after almost a decade at the club thanks to a lack of games in the last two seasons.
Among their targets to replace Varane and possibly Lindelöf are Bayern Munich’s Matthijs De Ligt, Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite and LOSC Lille’s Leny Yoro. All the clubs and players have been approached and reports indicate that United are closing in on deals for all three.
But the club is not in a celebratory mood because Yoro, 18, has outrightly refused to go to United even after Lille was reported to have accepted INEOS’ £42 million bid for the player.
The youngster is on Real Madrid’s radar to replace departing captain Nacho Fernandez, who calls time on his Santiago Bernabeu stay after 13 years. The Bernabeu outfit have not made any formal bids but are in discussions with both the club and the player. United’s bid was an attempt to hijack the transfer but while Lille accepted, Yoro refused.
It feels like a big slap on the face of the Red Devils who are among the clubs to make world-record signings and world-record sales.
This also adds to their frustration about not being able to convince Everton to let go of Branthwaite.
United have seen two bids refused for the young English centreback and were hoping to bag Yoro in his place. They still hold an interest in the player, who is believed to be interested in the move, but his ceiling is not considered to be as high as Yoro’s among experts.
United will go again for Branthwaite but until then, they are also working on De Ligt’s transfer. Reports have it that the player has agreed to the move which leaves discussions between Manchester United and Bayern.
In other news, some Olympique de Marseille fans have asked their club to end their interest in Mason Greenwood.
The former United prodigy is slowly clawing his way back to prominence, with his outing in Spain showing that he can still make it at the top level. United are hoping to cash in on that talent as his controversy is considered too big to overlook at the club.
Marseille are interested in him and are even believed to have agreed terms with him while preparing to discuss the transfer fee details with United. But a section of the club’s fans do not want them to go ahead with it.
Part of their statement reads: “At a time when negotiations for the arrival of Mason Greenwood are announced as becoming increasingly advanced, it seems necessary to explain, once again and before the damage becomes irreversible, why this transfer seems inconceivable in view of the values displayed by the club and why it would mean for many of us a red line that would irreparably damage the passion that we have for this club.”
Marseille remain in talks with United.
