£76.4m striker axed by his manager as Manchester United show January transfer interest

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Manchester United are on cloud nine after beating Manchester City but one potential January signing will be feeling pretty low.

Ruben Amorim has a first major win under his belt as Manchester United boss after beating Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.

United lead the head-to-head record against City having grabbed an 80th win in the derby with Sunday’s victory.

Amorim can be delighted with his side’s performance – especially having dropped Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho from the squad.

United secured the result but it’s clear that Amorim still have some way to go before being completely happy with this squad.

Additions will be needed in 2025 and one potential target appears to be available in the January window…

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PSG striker axed amid Manchester United interest

United signed Joshua Zirkzee over the summer but the Dutchman has yet to really impress at Old Trafford.

Dusan Vlahovic has been linked with United but more with a view to a summer move as the striker’s Juventus deal runs down.

Reports in November suggested that United are keen on Randal Kolo Muani having signed Rasmus Hojlund instead of him in 2023.

Kolo Muani joined Paris Saint-German instead, completing a £76.4million move from Eintracht Frankfurt, as noted by BBC Sport.

The Frenchman was not only exceptional in Germany with 23 goals in 46 games, but made an impact for France at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar too.

United’s interest made sense at the time but Kolo Muani’s move to PSG has turned out to be a nightmare.

Kolo Muani scored just nine times in all competitions last season and has only started two league games so far this season.

PSG boss Luis Enrique has now seemingly signalled the beginning of the end for Kolo Muani having axed him from the squad to face Lyon on Sunday.

Not even being named on the bench – much like Rashford and Garnacho for United against City – will have hurt Kolo Muani and this is the biggest indication yet that his time in Paris is coming to an end.

The January window is just around the corner and Kolo Muani’s absence on Sunday won’t have gone unnoticed at United.

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French newspaper on Manchester United interest in Kolo Muani

L’Equipe note that United are still interested in signing Kolo Muani – and will battle RB Leipzig for his signature.

RB Leipzig want to take Kolo Muani back to Germany, where he was such a huge threat with Eintracht Frankfurt.

That move seems a little more likely than joining United as things stand, and not just because of Kolo Muani’s history in the Bundesliga.

United signing another striker with Zirkzee and Hojlund in the mix just doesn’t seem likely in January and is something which may be revisited in the summer.

Add in that Kolo Muani hasn’t exactly impressed in France and we would be surprised to see him alive at Old Trafford next month.