Demanding £155m from Manchester United was a ‘disaster’ as club fumble big sale

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It is never too late to learn the art of selling. Much has been made of Manchester United’s incomings during the early Ineos era but the outgoings deserve attention too.

The Red Devils made over £100 million by selling a host of fringe players this summer, with further funds freed up by the removal of Anthony Martial, Raphael Varane and co from a previously eye-watering wage bill.

For a combined £50 million, Scott McTominay and Mason Greenwood enter the top ten biggest sales in Manchester United’s history.

Due to the 50 per cent sell on clause included in the latter’s Marseille contract, the Red Devils could be due a further windfall should Greenwood maintain his flying start to life in France.

Sell-on clauses were also inserted into the respective contracts of Facundo Pellistri, Maxi Oyedele, Will Fish and more.

• READ MORE: Manchester United confirmed signings, transfers in, out, loan exits, releases for 2024/25

Manchester United have finally learned how to sell

This feels like a stark contrast to the pre-Ineos days.

When Dan James left for Leeds back in 2021, he became only the fifth player in the previous decade to leave Man United for more money than they paid for him.

The substantial fees brought in for the likes of McTominay, Greenwood, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Willy Kambwala, then, represents a massive step forward in Man United’s drive towards self-sufficiency.

During the Glazer-run days, Man United would frequently be held to ransom by smarter-run clubs. Either overpaying for players they wanted, or letting others go for much smaller fees than they should really have brought in.

But even the Glazers would have been hard pressed have mishandling the whole, sorry Victor Osimhen situation worse than Napoli have done.

Back in 2023, when Man United were on the lookout for a centre-forward and had placed Osimhen on their wishlist, Napoli president Aurelio de Laurentiis sent his suitors running for the hills when publicly slapping a ‘200 million dollar’ price tag on his head.

£155 million, at the time. And this wasn’t all talk either.

Per Sky Sports, Napoli rejected a £120 million bid from Al-Hilal for the then-Golden Boot-winning Nigeria international.

When your demands are beyond even the financial reach of Saudi Arabia, that should probably be a sign that you are maybe asking for a little too much.

Napoli made a mess of their Victor Osimhen sale

One year on, Napoli have reduced Osimhen’s release clause not once but twice.

After starting off at £155 million, the Partenopei then opened themselves up to a sale worth £109 million.

Now, with Osimhen joining Galatasaray on loan, anyone looking to sign the former Lille hitman in the summer of 2025 may need to part with only £63 million, according to Sky Italia.

This has been a pretty embarrassing climbdown from Napoli.

And while some supporters will appreciate De Laurentiis’ ambition – refusing to cash in a year ago in an attempt to ensure Napoli’s Scudetto-winning campaign was not merely a one-off – the way Napoli have handled the Osimhen situation has been largely pretty disastrous.

Tensions had been rumbling on throughout last season, not helped by a few very ill-advised social media posts from the club’s official TikTok account, per The Guardian.

Had they not demanded as much as £155 million back in 2023, Napoli could have brought in a still-colossal fee by selling Osimhen to a Man United or another European giant, before then using those funds to strengthen their squad.

Instead, Osimhen was forced to stay put, with Man United turned to Rasmus Hojlund instead.

Struggling for form, suffering an almighty breakdown in relations with the club’s bosses, and eventually heading out on loan to Turkey, Napoli have cost themselves upwards millions upon millions while destroying their relationship with their star centre-forward along the way.

“A disaster. A bloodbath,” sighs former Italy international Antonio Cassano, via CalcioNews24. “De Laurentiis made an important transfer market and deserves credit, but he made a disaster with Osimhen.

“Now, Osimhen goes on loan to Galatasaray. But, next year, we’ll be back to square one. De Laurentiis made a bloodbath.

“He should have sold him immediately after the Scudetto.”