Full scale of sublime Man Utd coup emerges after three clubs beaten and comparisons to Man City legend made

The signing of midfield gem Sekou Kone is even more spectacular for Manchester United than first thought, with various reports detailing why the move may well be a masterstroke.

The headlines on deadline day at Old Trafford were largely hoovered up Jadon Sancho and Manuel Ugarte. Sancho is understood to have accepted a sizeable pay cut to help seal his initial loan move to Chelsea. The deal contains a conditional obligation to buy that will be triggered if Chelsea finish 14th or higher in the Premier League this season.

Assuming Chelsea achieve that extremely modest goal, Man Utd will receive a fee in the £20m-£25m range. Precisely how much they’ll collect hinges on how high Chelsea finish in the table.

Elsewhere, Manuel Ugarte completed his long-awaited move to Old Trafford where he’ll become the regular midfield partner to Kobbie Mainoo.

Man Utd signed Ugarte to a permanent deal after the sale of Scott McTominay to Napoli freed up enough money to sign the Uruguayan outright. PSG received €50million (£42.2m/$55.8m) plus a further €10m (£8.4m/$11.1m) in add-ons.

But going under the radar was Man Utd wrapping up the signing of 18-year-old Mali sensation, Sekou Kone.

ICYMI: All the done deals by Premier League clubs in the summer 2024 transfer window

Sekou Kone coup has hallmarks of a masterstroke

News of Man Utd chasing the holding midfielder was broken by Fabrizio Romano on August 22.

The deal was officially confirmed via United’s website on deadline day, while the Daily Mail stated United have paid Mali side Guidars FC a fee just north of £1m.

Kone will initially join Man Utd’s academy rather than be rushed into the first-team set-up.

Arriving in a new country will be a culture shock and Man Utd are wary of putting too much pressure on the youngster too soon in his budding career.

Nonetheless, Kone remains highly regarded at United and per a series of fresh updates, the scale of their coup is even greater than first thought.

Firstly, Fabrizio Romano revealed no fewer than three other clubs were also courting Kone.

Taking to X, the reporter stated: “Man Utd have been working on this deal for months in background to anticipate Ajax and two German clubs.

“2006 born Mali midfielder seen as top talent with view to the first team.”

Ajax hold a well-earned reputation for scouting and developing young players who go on to become household names elsewhere.

Man Utd have splashed the cash on several big-name signings from Ajax since Erik ten Hag took charge (Andre Onana – £44m, Lisandro Martinez – £56.5m including add-ons, Antony – £85m including add-ons).

Bringing Kone directly to Old Trafford could be seen as cutting out the middle man and could save the club a fortune in the market.

READ MORE: Why Man Utd NEED Manuel Ugarte: The born ball winner who can unlock Kobbie Mainoo

Comparisons to Man City icon made

Kone starred for Mali’s Under-17s during the U17 World Cup in 2023. The youngster helped his side advance to the semi-finals where Mali went on to defeat Argentina’s U17s in the third-place play-off.

Prior to that, Kone had earned rave reviews when securing a place in the team of the tournament at the U17s Africa Cup of Nations where Mali again reached the semi-finals.

Per the Mail, Kone’s style of play in the holding midfield role has resulted in ‘being compared to that of former Man City and Ivory Coast legend Yaya Toure by the African media.’

Toure was a key figure in establishing Man City as the dominant force in English football throughout the 2010s.

He won three Premier League titles for the club and was named African footballer of the year four straight times (2011-14) while on Man City’s books.

If Kone can come even remotely close to having the same level of impact Toure did, it may be he and not Ugarte who is looked back upon as United’s best piece of deadline day business in the summer of 2024.

DON’T MISS: Ten Hag slammed for ‘talking a load of rubbish’ about star Man Utd sold on deadline day