Manchester United are dealing with an unexpected Ederson development.
Ederson is joining up with the Brazil squad for the World Cup after an injury to Roma defender Wesley, and he is looking forward to it.
While I am pretty annoyed about how this will impact Manchester United’s pre-season plans, I do concede that this is beyond the club’s control.
United have no power to influence Brazil’s World Cup selection, and will have always known that it was possible Ederson could get a call, even as a late contingency.
That’s why making an early move could end up paying off.
Ederson has been called into Brazil’s World Cup squad – What is your INSTANT REACTION
Ederson fee agreed early
It was reported via The Athletic at the start of June that Manchester United had agreed a £35 million fee with Atalanta for Ederson.
United struck early to land Ederson, and getting the fee agreed prior to the World Cup could now be significant.
Ederson will head to the World Cup as a back-up, but he could quite easily force his way into Carlo Ancelotti’s plans.
We could quite easily see a scenario where Ederson steals the show for Brazil, and this would have given Atalanta great leverage in negotiations.
Ederson is already far more valuable than the £35 million fee that United agreed.
United were able to get him at a knock-down fee because his contract runs out in 12 months time.
A star showing at World Cup 2026 would have strengthened Atalanta’s weak hand, potentially bringing more interested teams to the table and prompting a bidding war.
It is vital that United have already got the fee agreed, and work will be ongoing from the club’s end to seal the deal as quickly as possible.
What is your INSTANT REACTION to Manchester United’s deal for Ederson?
Ederson’s call-up was unavoidable as far as United were concerned.
While there are optics that he landed the call because he will soon be playing for United, this isn’t the case, he is there on his own merit.
United have simply positioned themselves to make the best of this situation.
It’s not ideal that his arrival at Carrington will be delayed, but there are certainly positives to the scenario, and we can at least take some comfort that United’s early action will be beneficial.
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