Manchester United
Premier League • England
Fabrizio Romano confirms Man Utd midfield signing is coming, and familiar face could make it a double
Fabrizio Romano has revealed Man Utd have determined they will make “at least” one midfield signing this summer and the deal will not hinge on what happens with loanee Marcel Sabitzer.
The Red Devils are widely believed to be prioritising signing an elite-level striker this summer. The Manchester Evening News recently brought news of Erik ten Hag harbouring concerns his strikeforce has ‘limitations’.
Marcus Rashford has been simply sensational when notching a career-best 29 goals this season. However, Bruno Fernandes is the only other United player to hit double figures.
Antony, Jadon Sancho and Anthony Martial were all namechecked as potential concerns for Ten Hag. Despite costing a combined £216.4m, the trio have scored just 22 goals between them across all competitions this term.
However, speculation has continued to swirl Man Utd will seek to add a new central midfielder once their striker business is wrapped up.
Given Casemiro, Christian Eriksen and Fred are all the wrong side of 30, such a move does appear wise. What’s more, TEAMtalk have exclusively learned Man Utd will listen to offers for Fred this summer.
One option is the signing of Marcel Sabitzer on a permanent deal from Bayern Munich. The Austrian has performed well during his six-month loan stint and will not feature in Thomas Tuchel’s plans back in Bavaria moving forward.
Reports out of Germany recently detailed the relatively modest sum Sabitzer can be bought for.
BILD claimed just £16m could be enough to swing a deal. Sport1 state a ‘suitable offer’ between the range of £13.2m and £17.6m (€15m-€20m) will be enough.
However, according to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, United are seeking another new midfielder – irrespective of the Sabitzer outcome.
Taking to Twitter, Romano stated: “Manchester United have decided to sign at least one new midfielder in the summer, regardless of what’s [going to] happen with Marcel Sabitzer.”
The journalist added a centre-forward signing remains the “priority”, but a midfielder arrival other than Sabitzer has now been elevated to “crucial” status.
Romano stopped short of naming who the Red Devils will target, though plenty of other outlets believe they have the answer.
Which midfielder could Man Utd sign?
The MEN continue to claim United retain strong interest in Jude Bellingham and Frenkie de Jong. However, Bellingham appears destined for Real Madrid and De Jong still does not wish to leave Barcelona.
Instead, moves for the likes of Declan Rice, Alexis Mac Allister, Manu Kone, Adrien Rabiot, Mateo Kovacic and Ruben Neves have all been floated by one outlet or another.
West Ham captain Rice would command the same type of fee Bellingham and De Jong would, though the Hammers’ interest in Scott McTominay could swing a sizeable discount, per the Daily Mail.
Liverpool are the current favourites to sign Brighton’s Mac Allister, while Man City will provide stiff competition for Kovacic if losing Ilkay Gundogan to free agency.
Rabiot is perhaps the most intriguing of the lot given United heavily pursued the player last summer. Only his mother’s sky high wage demands prevented Adrien from signing at Old Trafford. Veronique Rabiot doubles up as her son’s agent.
However, the latest reports from Italy claim a ‘new direct contact’ has been made between United and the Rabiot family.
Adrien will also become a free agent this summer, meaning United can channel more funds into his personal terms given no transfer fee is required.
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