Fabrizio Romano reveals regrettable reason Man Utd didn’t sign Gianluigi Donnarumma

Why Manchester United steered themselves away from signing Gianluigi Donnarumma has been definitively revealed by Fabrizio Romano, and Sunday’s clash with Man City showcased why United have got it wrong once again.

After revamping their forward line in the first half of the summer window, Man Utd turned their attention to signing a new goalkeeper and central midfielder.

After learning their No 1 midfield target, Carlos Baleba, would not be moving, United opted to push their midfield plans back to 2026 and focus on the goalkeeper position.

Three stoppers came under serious consideration – Gianluigi Donnarumma, Senne Lammens and Emiliano Martinez.

Ultimately, United backed away from Donnarumma and of the two remaining options, they favoured Lammens. A €21m plus €4m in add-ons deal was sealed with Royal Antwerp on deadline day.

Donnarumma would also wind up in Manchester, though at Pep Guardiola’s Man City.

The giant Italian who had been frozen out at PSG amid a contract stand-off cost City €35m in total.

Donnarumma was thrust straight into the action on Sunday and while Erling Haaland’s brace ensured the Norwegian scooped the player of the match award, he was keen to highlight Donnarumma’s display in his post-match interview.

“Don’t forget about Donnarumma! He’s been fantastic today,” said Haaland. “I might give him my Man of the Match Award! He was unbelievable.”

Now, a fresh update from transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has shed light on why Man Utd swerved Donnarumma despite his contract status ensuring he was available for a cut-price fee.

Romano said on his \YouTube channel: “Why Man Utd didn’t sign Donnarumma? Man Utd considered the possibility, there was a call with the agents of Donnarumma in July to understand the situation, but never a negotiation, never an official bid and never anything concrete.

“Man Utd believed that despite the transfer fee – €30m plus €5m in add-ons – so not big money, but don’t forget the player was obviously out of contract in 2026 otherwise he was going to cost way more than this.

“Well Man Utd, apart from the transfer fee, didn’t want to spend big money on a salary. Because of the FFP situation, because of the salary structure they have, because of what they’re doing in terms of salary internally at the club.

“So they didn’t want to spend big money in terms of salary on Donnarumma. That was a decision, it was part of the strategy.”

Man Utd will regret Donnarumma decision

Donnarumma produced a world class stop to deny Bryan Mbeumo in the derby while United were two goals down and within touching distance.

“What a strike, what a SAVE!”

Gianluigi Donnarumma denies a Bryan Mbeumo worldie on his Man City debut! 🧤 pic.twitter.com/JoFebKQmp0

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 14, 2025

Lammens, meanwhile, did not start the match despite being signed to be Man Utd’s new No 1.

Aged 23 and with just one full season of Belgian top flight football under his belt, Lammens does not boast the elite-level experience and familiarity with big games like Donnarumma does.

In any case, the contrast in fortunes spoke volumes, with Man City’s new goalkeeper producing a dominant display and United’s new goalkeeper not deemed worthy enough to start by his manager.

Of course, Lammens could go on to become a truly top class goalkeeper given time. But if Man Utd had bitten the bullet and paid Donnarumma the salary he craves, they’d have had a top class keeper right now.

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