Crystal Palace star Michael Olise is expected to choose Manchester United over Chelsea this summer with the Premier League assist-machine an ‘avid’ fan of the Red Devils.
After missing out on one of the division’s most exciting forwards last summer – Chelsea triggered the £35 million release clause in his contract, only to see Michael Olise sign a new deal at Selhurst Park – history could be about to repeat itself for Mauricio Pochettino’s side.
Olise, you see, is a dyed-in-the-wool Manchester United supporter. Cut him and he bleeds, erm, red? Well, you know what we mean.
And Football London claims that, should United and Chelsea find themselves embarking upon a tug-of-war, Olise is likely to drift towards the latter rather than the former. The report adds that the Crystal Palace talisman ‘would favour a move to Manchester United’ over their London-based rivals.
Michael Olise is a Manchester United fan
This will be music to the ears of the club’s new minority investors. United reportedly want Olise to be one of the first marquee signings of the INEOS era at Old Trafford, per The Standard, though Sir Jim Ratcliffe would have to part with a fee ‘considerably’ higher than £35 million these days.
Funnily enough, United legend Rio Ferdinand recently highlighted Olise as the sort of player who could make the best use out of Rasmus Hojlund’s presence in Erik ten Hag’s attack. Hojlund has been starved of service during much of his Premier League career so far, but Olise is an elite supplier of ammunition from the wing.
Only Mo Salah and Kevin de Bruyne produced more than the Frenchman’s 11 top-flight assists in 2022/23. That is the kind of company Olise is keeping these days, a player who joined Crystal Palace for a bargain £8 million from Reading comfortably outperforming the man he might end up replacing under Ten Hag.
Ratcliffe revival underway
“He’s better than Antony, isn’t he,” former England, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Danny Murphy tells talkSPORT (3 January, 12pm).
“He’s better than what (Manchester United) have got.”
According to The Daily Mail, Ratcliffe is planning to build his Manchester United revival upon the foundations of young, homegrown up-and-comers. Olise, who honed his talents in Berkshire, is one such option, alongside Marc Guehi, Jarrad Branthwaite and Middlesbrough midfielder Hayden Hackney.
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