Conor Gallagher sends message to Atletico Madrid with ‘not satisfied’ comment amid Man Utd links

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Manchester United might be forced to dip into the transfer market in January, particularly in midfield, and Conor Gallagher has been linked repeatedly.

Conor Gallagher is the perfect Ineos signing in many ways due to his age profile, Premier League pedigree, and his situation at Atletico Madrid.

Signing him at the cost of Kobbie Mainoo leaving is contentious, but that’s more about Mainoo’s status at Old Trafford than a slight on the Atletico player.

Gallagher has now been happy to engage with the rumours by putting pressure on his team with a ‘not satisfied’ comment amid January links to Man Utd.

Conor Gallagher on potential January move

Gallagher has been a model professional at Atletico because he has made the most of every opportunity, despite not being given many starting minutes.

Diego Simeone also appreciates the player, but he is effectively in the same boat as Mainoo, where he’s looking for regular minutes to make the World Cup squad next summer.

As such, United could offer him a lifeline, with a loan deal and an option to buy for next summer mooted as a possibility.

He said: “I’m not satisfied [with playing time]. I don’t think anyone is if they’re not playing as much as they’d like, but I’ll keep working very hard to help the team whenever I have the chance, and hopefully, more opportunities to be a starter will come.

I’m very happy here. My goal is to win titles with Atleti, and I want to have a bigger role in the team. And, as I’ve said, I’m going to keep working as hard as I can to play more minutes and help the team.”

He added that it’s difficult to show how good he can be in limited minutes, sending another thinly-veiled message to his team about his lack of minutes.

Man Utd will monitor Gallagher’s situation

Reading between the lines of his comments, it’s clear that the Englishman wants a better playing situation but doesn’t want to kick up a fuss.

United would do well to monitor his situation between now and January to see if his playing time improves, because if it doesn’t, he will want a move.

United just have to make sure that it’s not at the cost of Mainoo’s exit, because that would be a sideways move.

They can look at Gallagher as a piece of the long-term puzzle in the midfield overhaul next summer, because adding someone like Elliot Anderson to that crop will be brilliant business.

Either way, it remains a developing situation with Gallagher, and his public pressure on Atletico about his minutes is not a remark without any intentions.