Manchester United continues its midfield rebuild. After completing the arrival of Andrey Santos from Chelsea for almost €60 million, the Red Devils hoped to move on with Ederson to replace Casemiro, while Manuel Ugarte injured his knee ligaments during Uruguay’s defeat against Spain in the World Cup. An agreement worth €40.5 million, accompanied by €4.5 million in bonuses, had even been reached with Atalanta and the personal terms with the Brazilian international were already finalized.
But the transfer was ultimately canceled on Friday due to an unsatisfactory medical examination, forcing the Mancunian club to review their plans. However, Manchester United leaders were quick to bounce back. According to The Athleticthey quickly made Youri Tielemans their new priority. Arriving free at Aston Villa in 2023 after his departure from Leicester, Tielemans has established himself as one of the executives of Unai Emery’s team. Last season, the Belgium captain participated in the Villans’ coronation in the Europa League and their qualification for the Champions League.
A second midfielder completed
Despite Amadou Onana’s serious injury, Emery wanted to build his midfielder around the Tielemans-Kamara-Onana trio, but Manchester United seem to have found the fault. Indeed, the Red Devils have activated the €41 million release clause contained in the Belgian midfielder’s contract at Aston Villa. A verbal agreement has also been reached with the 29-year-old, who favors a move to Old Trafford despite interest from several other clubs. Author of 2 goals and 7 assists in 35 games, he is considered the best plan B after the Ederson failure.
Disappointed, the Brazilian returned to Italy, where Atalanta now wants to extend his contract until 2031. But the arrival of the ex-AS Monaco midfielder responds to a need that has become a priority for the Old Trafford team, which thus completes a second midfielder in a few days. Thanks to his experience in the Premier League and his good performance with the Red Devils in the United States this summer, Tielemans appears to be the ideal profile to strengthen Michael Carrick’s team.
