Man Utd open talks to beat Real Madrid to £28m signing, Carlo Ancelotti has praised him

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This Christmas season, Ruben Amorim will have only one present on his wishlist: Manchester United reinforcements in January and one position is the clear priority.

Six games into Ruben Amorim’s era and it is clear this will be a long project.

The Portuguese head coach warned Manchester United fans not to get carried away early, explaining that it would take time.

Since then Amorim’s repeatedly called for patience and he will get it, with fans in agreement that the squad is simply not good enough.

So with this in mind, 2025 will see a clearout as Manchester United will look to undo years of terrible recruitment. Only six players are seen as unsellable, which speaks volumes about the job facing Jason Wilcox and Christopher Vivell.

Now, United have begun talks over a potential new signing.

• READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Man Utd’s head coach – Ruben Amorim

Ineos enter talks to sign Miguel Gutierrez

One thing which has become clear over the past three weeks is that Amorim needs a left wing-back at United.

Now, according to TeamTalk, Ineos are set to oblige potentially in January.

The report claims that United have now started direct contact with Girona over signing left wing-back and long-term target Miguel Gutierrez from Girona.

Gutierrez has already made it clear he intends to leave the La Liga outfit in 2025, and he and Girona are both thought to be open to selling to Old Trafford.

Gutierrez has a release clause valued at €35 million (£28m), however, it is claimed that Girona would be willing to negotiate a fee lower than this price – making the 23-year-old an absolute bargain.

Finally, the report adds that Gutierrez has begun discussing possible personal terms, with Girona giving their blessing.

United will however face competition from Real Madrid who are keeping a close eye on Gutierrez according to AS. But after beating Los Blancos to Leny Yoro, United will be confident of repeating this.

• READ MORE: Who are INEOS? Exploring Man Utd co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s billion-pound business

Carlo Ancelotti already praised Manchester United target in 2024

Signing Gutierrez could be the second left wing-back addition United make in January, with the deal for Diego Leon on the verge of completion.

However, while the Paraguayan teenager would be one for the future, Gutierrez would be for the right now, and his development at Girona has even caught Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti’s eye earlier this year.

“Miguel Gutierrez has improved a lot at Girona”, the legendary Italian boss explained. “He’s playing very well”.

This was prior to the summer 2024 window when Madrid could have signed him for just €8m (£6.6m) – a decision they surely now regret.

As a wing-back, Gutierrez is very much an attack-first player – making him perfect for the role Amorim wants to fill.

Gutierrez’s stats past 365 days vs positional peers

As the January window draws near, links to left wing-backs are getting hotter and hotter. Seems inevitable for United.