Man United suffer blow in pursuit of Carlos Baleba alternative who they "tried to sign" before
Man United are keen on Brighton midfielder Carlos Baleba, but they are also considering cheaper alternatives.
Ruben Amorim will be hoping his side can secure three points this weekend when they face off against Brentford. If United do win on Saturday, it would be their first consecutive wins under Amorim since he joined last year.
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The Manchester United boss is keen to add a midfielder in the January transfer window after he failed to in the summer. Brighton’s Carlos Baleba was a big target for United, and he wanted the move to Old Trafford too.
However, Brighton placed a £100 million-plus price tag on the 21-year-old, pricing United out of a deal, and so the Red Devils had to go into the first half of the season without adding a new central midfielder. However, they have been linked to a cheaper alternative.
Man United target De Jong agrees new Barcelona contract
One of Man United’s alternative targets, who they have been linked with for some time, is Barcelona midfielder Frenkie De Jong. The 28-year-old Dutch midfielder has made four La Liga appearances so far. He also started for Hansi Flick’s side against Newcastle in the Champions League.
However, the midfielder has reportedly agreed a new contract at Barcelona, which is a big blow in United’s pursuit of the 28-year-old. Former Premier League scout Mick Brown told Football Insider: “Man United have tried to sign De Jong before,
“It doesn’t come as a surprise that Man United are looking at him again, they feel he would add something in midfield which they haven’t got at the moment. Everybody knows Amorim wants a new midfielder and he has been one they like the look of.”
But, it seems the midfielder has chosen to stay at Barcelona and sign a new contract that should last until 2029. That means that either he is opting against a transfer away, or United would have to pay significantly more to get him if they were to make a move.
Who could Man United target instead?
Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton has been linked with United for some time now as a cheaper alternative to Baleba. Furthermore, Wharton is more proven in the Premier League, and is on the radar of several clubs including Liverpool and Real Madrid.
He is expected to cost around £60m, however, if Palace do sell Marc Guehi in January, which is looking more and more likely, they could be reluctant to lose their other star player in Wharton at the same time, especially considering they have European football this season under Oliver Glasner.
Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson is reportedly another target for the Red Devils; however, he is also expected to cost around £70m, making the England international another very expensive option, much like Baleba.
United will most likely wait until the summer transfer window to sign a Baleba-type player, so De Jong would have been a perfect stop-gap in January, with an estimated cost of around £39m.