Fabrizio Romano: £64m deal 'at final stages' for Man Utd striker target to join Champions League club

Manchester United look set to miss out on another one of their striker targets with a Champions League club closing in on a deal.

United are looking to swiftly seal a deal for Bryan Mbeumo with a medical this weekend after a fee was agreed with Brentford following a £70m bid on Thursday.

The Red Devils have signed Matheus Cunha for £62.5m with their deal for Mbeumo to push their spending above £130m this summer, with a deal for Diego Leon costing around £7m.

After missing out on Champions League football, United have a smaller transfer budget to work with and will need to start selling players in order to raise funds for further incomings. Five players, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Alejandro Garnacho, Tyrell Malacia and Antony have all expressed a desire to leave the club.

However, permanent exits for the quintet do not appear close. Sancho is in talks with Juventus, in the deal that appears closest as things stand. Confirming United’s plan after making a major breakthrough for Mbeumo, Fabrizio Romano said: “Manchester United plan to sign new striker in the next weeks as main target after Bryan Mbeumo deal done.

“Outgoings will be key for budget as Garnacho, Sancho, Rashford, Antony remain among players set to leave.”

Man Utd to miss out on Victor Osimhen

One player who has been of interest to United this summer is Napoli striker Victor Osimhen. The Nigerian international has been free to leave the Serie A club after spending last season on loan at Galatasaray.

Last week, Romano confirmed United had held an interest but the player was not willing to take a pay cut in order to make the move to Old Trafford. Now he is set to join Galatasaray permanently, in a deal worth up to £64m but only £34m will be paid this summer and the other £30m by the end of 2026.

Romano confirmed on X: “Galatasaray and Napoli, at the final stages of Victor Osimhen deal after positive talks today. Gala set to pay €40m (£34m) now, €35m (£30m) by the end of 2026 — also won’t be able to sell the player to Italian clubs for two years.

“Guarantees and sell-on clause, now as final topics.”

Man Utd have missed a major opportunity with Victor Osimhen

While Galatasaray have qualified for the Champions League, the pull of playing for United in the Premier League is not to be underestimated. United need proven goal-scorers and while Osimhen’s salary proved a sticking point - paying £34m for a prolific forward is incredibly rare in today’s transfer marker.

While another £30m would be due in 18 months, a front three of Cunha, Mbeumo and Osimhen would have gave the Red Devils a great chance of making a push for the Champions League and helped earn a decent chunk in prize money.

Paul Scholes felt Osimhen was a doable deal for his old club, as he told The Overlap Fan Debate last month: "I think Osimhen [is free to leave Napoli summer], it sounds like a doable one. When you talk about financial problems, he could be doable."

Speaking 18 months ago, Osimhen did outline his dream to one day play in the Premier League which could have been another factor in United’s favour. Osimhen said: “Future in the Premier League? Of course I would like to play it one day , for now I have other plans for my career. When the time comes you will know everything.”