[Sami Mokbel, BBC] Manchester United: Farewell number 18, hello number six – inside Man Utd’s midfielder hunt
by nearly_headless_nic
![[Sami Mokbel, BBC] Manchester United: Farewell number 18, hello number six - inside Man Utd's midfielder hunt](https://www.eucup.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/mr75ht7x6ZmhzMn3gsQ4lD-ZKHMzFZMzsKNfs8XzjIk-1024x576.jpeg "[Sami Mokbel, BBC] Manchester United: Farewell number 18, hello number six – inside Man Utd’s midfielder hunt")
[Sami Mokbel, BBC] Manchester United: Farewell number 18, hello number six – inside Man Utd’s midfielder hunt
by nearly_headless_nic
21 Comments
**Key Bits -**
**The plan? Qualify for the Champions League, appoint a manager and then sign a midfielder**
– If he (Carrick) can lead the club to **a top-four finish he will confirm his serious candidacy, though the attraction of appointing a proven ‘elite’ head coach should not be underestimated** as United decide the identity of their next boss.
# United v City for the top target?
– **Nottingham Forest midfielder Anderson is viewed internally by many at United as the player the club should prioritise.**
– **Anderson would likely cost United a minimum of £80m** – a fee they accept they will need to pay to secure one of their top targets for the coveted number six position.
– **Multiple sources have told BBC Sport that City are the clear frontrunners to land Anderson at the end of the season.**
– That is not to say United will abandon their interest in him.
– While United would be wary of getting involved in an auction over wages with their city rivals, **they are prepared to make a substantial effort to sign Anderson.**
– But, for obvious reasons, **United are not putting all their eggs in the Anderson basket.**
# Who else is on United’s shortlist?
– While United are not discounting looking abroad in their search for a new lynchpin, the club would prefer Premier League experience.
**- Baleba, Wharton and Tonali are also among the players United’s recruitment team have discussed and will continue to explore.**
**- One well-placed source has told BBC Sport that, via an intermediary, United have made a tentative enquiry about Brighton midfielder Baleba in recent months.**
– Crystal Palace’s Wharton is certainly admired at United, but whether he fits the sort of central-midfielder profile the club are looking for is unclear.
– Similarly with Tonali, Newcastle have a history of making things difficult for clubs interested in their players. Just ask Alexander Isak and Liverpool.
– But there is a suggestion the Italy midfielder is open to leaving St James’ Park this summer, with his representatives understood to be scoping out the market to ascertain which clubs may be interested in him.
**- Outside the Premier League, Atalanta midfielder Ederson is among the players in Europe who club recruitment staff have identified as having potential.**
**- Baleba, Wharton and Tonali are also among the players United’s recruitment team have discussed and will continue to explore.**
**- One well-placed source has told BBC Sport that, via an intermediary, United have made a tentative enquiry about Brighton midfielder Baleba in recent months.**
So Tonali, Baleba and a cheaper midfielder in summer?
If we go for Baleba his price better have halved since the ‘fuck off’ price from Brighton last year
Can’t be paying north of 60m for a player who’s just had a crap season, constantly getting hooked.
Anderson would be annoying to miss out on but can’t have them all. Tonali would be amazing.
Still think we need 3, and to sell Ugarte.
Difficult to have a strong preference here without knowing who the manager will be.
If we’re going for a like-for-like replacement of Casemiro, then the obvious answer is Baleba or Tonali. Would make sense considering Mainoo is becoming increasingly more adept at being the deepest midfielder to receive the ball off the backline.
If we get a manager like Enrique (unrealistic I know) then you likely go for more of a Wharton and/or João Gomes.
Some alternatives to look out for would be Chema Andrés and Mouzakitis.
Would love Anderson but seem like a long shot.
Tonali would be good. Him and Mainoo in midfield and he would do the running for Fernandes. Also a good age, good experience, would align with what we did with Cunha and Mbeumo.
Don’t know if Wharton has the physical profile to play in United midfield. That would make a nightmare pairing with Kobbie.
Baleba should not be our priority #1. A bonus loaded offer with another one or two midfield signings should be the case if we go for him.
If Newcastle isn’t interested, we shouldn’t force Tonali.
A Cas replacement and competition for Mainoo would be nice. In an ideal world an upgrade of Ugarte too but that might not be financially feasible.
If we’re settled on Baleba I hope we just get the deal done quickly, Cameroon aren’t in the world cup which means he could join straight away and take part in pre season
Ederson is our new Gaitan
I think our priority should be Wharton + Tonali. Wharton is an elite passer and would alleviate a lot of the creative burden on Bruno.
If we move on from Ugarte I wouldn’t mind Andre from Wolves as a cheap, pl proven bench option. He’s not a starter but if we have European football and make a couple deep tournament runs he would be a great defensive rotation player.
Yawn 🥱
Assuming we’re sticking to the plan of only signing players that clearly want to come, then this is all bollox until we start making concrete approaches.
Also interesting to see if we keep the tactic of getting other clubs to bid first to find the actual price and not the United tax nonsense we seem to be stuck with.
Gotta catch them all
Needs to be multiple. If anyone on the board thinks we can get away with one first team quality midfielder then we’re fucked next year with all the extra games
Is joao gomes really good? I’ve seen only little of him, but from when I’ve watched he doesn’t seem to be up to the level, and looks like he always has a mistake in him
But a lot of people on here seems to rate him.. I feel he’s at Ugarte’s level and not an upgrade
Tonali + Wharton would be the ideal midfield signings for us ngl
>If he (Carrick) can lead the club to a top-four finish he will confirm his serious candidacy, though the attraction of appointing a proven ‘elite’ head coach should not be underestimated.
They better be considering Enrique and Nagelsmann the elite head coach, not the likes of Iraola, Glasner and others. These two are the only ones, maybe Ancelotti butI don’t know if he’s staying with Brazil, that I’d like more than Carrick, assuming a top 3 finish.
We really should be going for João Gomes here. Hugh potential wolves get relegated so he’ll be cheaper than any other target. He is a similar profile to Bruno G. He also has better stats than Bruno G not only in ball winning put also a statistically better progresser. And he’s also younger!
The PL channel on YouTube have put up a video about him and it seems like an absolute no brainer of a decision to get him.
This is going to get very tedious for the next three months
I really think we can convince Anderson to join us. Pep future unclear, no telling if Anderson will get consistent minutes as well. He’ll be a guaranteed starter here and we have champions league and with the right recruitment a real chance to do something next season.