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Yesterday evening, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano teased Manchester United fans with claims that Manuel Ugarte may not be the last signing the club makes in this transfer window.
Ugarte is reported to be on his way to Manchester for a medical, and with Scott McTominay and Hannibal Mejbri looking set to join Napoli and Burnley, respectively, it seemed as if the Red Devils’ transfer business was done for the summer.
Romano, however, stated that “There could still be space for something last minute for Manchester United. Nothing 100% confirmed yet, so Man United will decide [this] week based on opportunities, but I would keep the door always open for last minute opportunities.”
The question is, who might that last-minute signing be? Unusually, there have been few rumours of other targets besides Ugarte and those already signed – Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui and Joshua Zirkzee.
Reports of a player exchange between Jadon Sancho and a Chelsea player – possibly Raheem Sterling or Ben Chilwell – seem lukewarm due to the complexities of such a transaction at such a late stage in the window. But this is not impossible.
Other than that, there do not seem many obvious choices, although here are three that would, in theory, be relatively straightforward purchases for Ineos should they decide to pounce.
1. Adrien Rabiot
The Frenchman is still without a club having left Juventus in June and the rumour mill is strangely quiet where he is concerned. There have been vague reports of Liverpool interest and a “no” to Galatasaray, but that’s about it. The fact remains that Rabiot is a quality midfielder in the prime of his playing career at 28 years old and he is someone United tried to sign two summers ago.
If McTominay completes his move to Napoli, having already lost Donny van de Beek and with Christian Eriksen seemingly not in Erik ten Hag’s plans, United’s central midfield roster is very light. If personal terms can be agreed, a last-minute move for Rabiot would make a lot of sense.
2. Mario Hermoso
Although United have already added two centre backs to their ranks in Leny Yoro and Matthijs de Ligt and look to have failed to move on Victor Lindelof or Harry Maguire, it has been reported that they had turned down the chance to sign free agent Hermoso this summer.
However, this could still be revisited. Cover at left back is still thin on the ground and Lisandro Martinez is still the only left-footed centre back at the club. Hermoso could provide the solution to both those issues. It should also be noted that the source of the story claiming United had rejected the chance to sign Hermoso was Spanish outlet AS, which is not always renowned for its reliability.
3. Jonathan David
It seems to be a surprise in every transfer window that no big club has seriously come in for the Lille forward. He is a super-talented young striker with an incredible 28 goals in 54 games for Canada and 87 in 188 for Lille. Still only 24 years old, David is moving into the last year of his contract and Lille will be desperate to move him on rather than lose him on a free next summer.
His market value is a whopping €50 million, but given the circumstances a deal could potentially be done for less.
Spurs flirted with a move for him before going for Dominic Solanke, while links to West Ham and Chelsea have been there, but are not hot right now.
Ticking all the boxes in Ineos’ blueprint for young talent with world class potential, David could be a sensational last-minute surprise signing if the budget allows, especially if Jadon Sancho is moved on to free up a space on the forward line.
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2024-08-27 07:12:13
