Man Utd in sensational £50m transfer ‘hijack’, as Ratcliffe closes in on big Ligue 1 capture

Manchester United have attempted to disrupt Aston Villa’s move for Amadou Onana, while Sir Jim Ratcliffe is moving closer to signing No 3.

Since joining Everton from Lille in August 2022, Onana has regularly been linked with a big move away from Goodison Park. Indeed, Arsenal, Man Utd and Barcelona are just some of the major clubs who have taken a look at the central midfielder.

But it recently emerged that Aston Villa have struck a £50million agreement with Everton as Unai Emery’s side push to win the race for Onana.

The Belgian is very keen on making the move a reality as it would give him the opportunity to shine in the Champions League after Aston Villa finished fourth in the Premier League last season.

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After it was revealed that Villa had agreed terms for Onana’s potential signing, the Villans were expected to proceed quickly and finalise the deal.

But that has yet to happen, and this has led to an attempted ‘hijack’ from Man Utd. As per Belgian reporter Sacha Tavolieri, Man Utd have thundered in with a ‘last-minute’ bid for Onana.

Man Utd’s proposal matches the £50m agreement Villa have in place with Everton.

Luckily for Emery, the player has decided to go through with his transfer to Villa Park. Onana wants to stick to his personal agreement with Emery, while he also feels he will develop better at Villa as their project is thriving.

Man Utd transfers: Amadou Onana swoop fails

Tavolieri then provides all the inside details on Onana’s switch to Villa, which will soon be announced after Man Utd’s late push was thwarted.

When Onana returns from his summer holiday, he will travel to Birmingham and undergo a medical.

Villa will pay Everton an initial £45m, though the deal could reach £50m depending on other bonus clauses.

Onana will sign a long-term contract which is designed to keep him at the West Midlands club until June 2029.

The 22-year-old is due to sign his new contract on Sunday, which will allow Villa to announce him as their player on Monday.

Onana, who has won 17 caps for Belgium, will soon become Villa’s seventh new arrival of the summer window.

The club has already brought in Lewis Dobbin, Ian Maatsen, Enzo Barrenechea, Samuel Iling-Junior, Ross Barkley and Jaden Philogene.

Man Utd will be disappointed that Onana has opted to go through with his big Villa transfer. But it is not the end of the world for Ratcliffe as he is eyeing a different midfielder.

Earlier on Friday, it emerged that Man Utd have agreed personal terms with Paris Saint-Germain’s Manuel Ugarte.

There have been conflicting reports over how much Ugarte will cost, with some claiming his price tag has been set at £38m, whereas others suggest Man Utd will have to pay as much as £50m.

Either way, Ratcliffe is determined to follow up on the Joshua Zirkzee and Leny Yoro deals with the Uruguayan’s capture and could sell either Scott McTominay or Casemiro to free up funds.

Although, sources have revealed to TEAMtalk the reasons why PSG are open to selling Ugarte, and it may concern Man Utd supporters.

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