Barcelona want to rival Man Utd in race for £33m midfielder

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Manchester United remain interested in signing Everton midfielder Amadou Onana but now face a potential hijack attempt from Barcelona.

2024 is just around the corner and it could be another year of midfield changes at Manchester United.

United landed Mason Mount and Sofyan Amrabat over the summer but Mount has yet to really make an impact and the jury is still out on Amrabat.

Add in major questions over the long-term future of Casemiro and we could see United bring in one, two or even three midfielders in 2024.

The emergence of Kobbie Mainoo has been welcome boost this season but he certainly needs more talent around him moving forward.

Manchester United remain keen on Amadou Onana

One name which just won’t go away is Amadou Onana.

United were interested in Onana over the summer and Everton allegedly feared that they wouldn’t be able to stop Onana joining United.

No deal was done in the end but Foot Mercato’s Santi Aouna now claims that United are following Onana ‘closely’.

However, Aouna claims that Barcelona have now held a meeting with Onana’s representatives to discuss a move.

The Catalan giants are seemingly accelerating their move to sign Onana as they look for an athletic box-to-box player.

Onana would fit that mould and Barcelona’s interest leaves United with a decision to make over moving for the Belgian.

Is Onana the right profile for United?

Mainoo appears to have potential as a sitting midfield player, showing superb scanning and composure on the ball.

Bruno Fernandes is, of course, a top playmaking talent and United will be looking for players who complement those two moving forward.

Onana certainly packs a physical presence at 6ft 4in tall but he isn’t a defensive midfielder – we have been down this road before.

Scott McTominay has been miscast as a defensive midfielder in the past and his profile is actually somewhat similar to Onana’s.

Both players are enormous but arguably do their best work when breaking into the box from midfield rather than sitting and protecting the back four.

Adding Onana would only really make sense if he has the freedom to break forward with a strong defensive presence behind him.

That would be a lot to pile on Mainoo at a young age and United would likely have to sign another holder, especially if Casemiro leaves.

Rio Ferdinand has compared Onana to Marouane Fellaini and had doubts about him joining United as he is ‘not clean enough’.

This is something United have to think carefully about as Onana won’t come cheap just 18 months after joining Everton for £33million.

Onana’s raw talent and potential is very appealing, but we would be wary of entering a bidding war with Barcelona for a player who still has plenty of developing to do on the ball.

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