Man United and Chelsea eyeing up move for £38m Argentinian wonderkid who idolises Lionel Messi

Man United have seen several young talents come to Old Trafford over the past season, who could turn into key first-team names for Ruben Amorim’s side in years to come. Ayden Heaven and Chido Obi Martin have both broken out in the United side in the 2024/25 campaign, after they were both signed from Arsenal following their progress through the academy at Hale End.

Furthermore, the likes of Kobbie Mainoo and Leny Yoro are both tipped to become world-class players for Amorim in the future. Now, United may have found their latest wonderkid, this time hailing from Argentina.

Manchester United and Chelsea keen on Franco Mastantuono

One player who is generating a lot of Premier League interest is River Plate midfielder Franco Mastantuono, who, at just 17 years old, has already become a key player for the Argentinian side. According to the Daily Mail, both Man United and Chelsea are keen to sign Mastantuono, who has a release clause of £38m, which break the club’s record for a fee received should it be triggered.

Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Atletico Madrid are all reportedly keen on the midfielder too, with interest from the Serie A also expected this summer. Mastantuono became River Plate’s youngest ever goalscorer at just 16 years, five months and 25 days in February 2024.

The 17-year-old idolises Argentinian legend Lionel Messi, so much that he has a tattoo of ‘18/12/22’ because of Messi - the date when he won his first World Cup with Argentina. Mastantuono said in an interview with TYC Sports: “I have 18/12/22 tattooed because of Messi. He is my idol and I follow him a lot, we all celebrated the World Cup for him. I wear '30' for him, the truth is that I admire him and wearing this number is something very beautiful.”

The 17-year-old plays as an attacking midfielder, but can also play as a winger, like Messi, and has impressed so far this season for River Plate, making 12 appearances and scoring three goals while also providing two assists.

Mastantuono could replace Garnacho

If United are able to beat the likes of Chelsea, Real Madrid and Barcelona to the signature of Mastantuono this summer, he could become their replacement for Alejandro Garnacho, who has been linked with a move away. Garnacho has generated reported interest from Napoli and Chelsea, with reports suggesting earlier in April that Napoli were preparing a £67m bid for Garnacho, but United have reportedly dropped their asking price for the 20-year-old to just £38.5m.

If that is the confirmed asking price from United, it would be a surprise if they didn’t see bids coming in for Garnacho from the likes of Chelsea and Napoli for a summer sale. The winger has scored five goals in 32 Premier League games this season for the Red Devils.

In other news, Athletic Club suffer injury scare that could have huge impact on Manchester United Europa League tie.