Manchester United are ‘ready’ to make a bid of £25 million for Lille star Carlos Baleba but Erik ten Hag will face competition from Premier League rivals Newcastle and West Ham.
The Red Devils have this week been linked with a move for Everton’s midfield colossus Amadou Onana, via The Athletic’s David Ornstein. But perhaps, finally learning from past mistakes, they will instead opt to cut out the middle man and opt to go direct to source.
Manchester United could have saved themselves a lot of dough had they taken a £35 million punt on Onana when he was still a Lille player back in 2022. And this has long been a source of frustration among some United supporters; the 13-time Premier League champions reluctant to take a punt on a talented-if-unproven youngster before then offering to pay over the odds later down the line.
We see your Amadou Onana, and we raise you Moises Caicedo. A player United could have signed for £4 million, and will now be quoted £80 million for.
Manchester United consider Carlos Baleba bid
Reports from La Voix du Nord suggest that Manchester United are planning to go direct to Lille this time and pay £25 million for 19-year-old Carlos Baleba. This represents a refreshing change of pace.
West Ham and Newcastle are also keen. La Voix du Nord, a French publication who specialise in Lille, add that serious interest also is being shown ‘especially’ from the Old Trafford outfit; all three clubs ready to test Les Dogues resolve with a bid just shy of £30 million.
This certainly makes a change. In another era, West Ham or Newcastle would sign Baleba, they’d develop him into one of Europe’s most exciting young midfielders, and then Man United would come rushing in with an offer far exceeding £50 million 12 months down the line. This still might happen – but right now, the Red Devils are in the mix.
Their pursuit of players such as Baleba and the 20-year-old Atalanta striker Rasmus Hojlund is, then, an acceptance that things their strategy must be altered.
There is no excuse for United not to go out and scout these players themselves, and snap them up for a mere fraction of the fees they will eventually be worth.
“Carlos is the future of the club, there is no doubt,” Lille coach Paulo Fonseca says of the teenage Baleba, an athletic, Rolls Royce of a midfielder who possesses many of then attributes that saw Onana stand out across the Channel.
“Carlos is young, but he brings something different, which is very good for us. He is powerful, strong, he carries the ball very well,” adds team-mate Jonathan David.
“I could tell you that I can’t believe he’s 18 (now 19).”
Baleba is likely viewed by United as an alternative option. One to pursue if Ten Hag miss out on the likes of Declan Rice, Moises Caicedo and number one target Mason Mount.
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