According to reports, Manchester United are willing to ‘abandon’ their move for ‘top target’ Bryan Mbeumo amid interest from Tottenham Hotspur.
This summer’s transfer window is vital for the Red Devils as they need to make several statement signings after finishing 15th in the Premier League in 2024/25.
It has been suggested that they could struggle to secure their top targets after failing to qualify for Europe next season, while it’s also been reported that they are working with a limited budget.
Ruben Amorim‘s side had to offload unwanted talents to raise funds for signings in January as they could only bring in Patrick Dorgu and Ayden Heaven.
It was a blow to miss out on Europe, but their situation does not seem as dour this summer as they have already signed Matheus Cunha from Wolves after activating his £62.5m release clause.
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Man Utd sanctioned this deal while waiting on a cash injection through player sales, with Antony, Alejandro Garnacho, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho among those expected to move on.
While discussions remain ongoing over exits, Man Utd are also working on more signings as Brentford standout Bryan Mbeumo has emerged as a leading target after he scored 20 Premier League goals last season.
Mbeumo, like Cunha, would be an upgrade on Man Utd’s current No.10 options, but they face competition from Spurs as new head coach Thomas Frank plots a reunion.
Initial reports suggested the forward was leaning towards a move to Man Utd, but Tottenham have reportedly ‘launched a £70m hijack’ to beat their rivals to sign the Brentford star.
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Now, a report from ESPN has revealed Man Utd’s summer strategy as they have ‘the headroom to bring in new players this summer by reducing the wage bill and making other savings, including through co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s redundancy program’.
However, club chiefs are prepared to ‘abandon their pursuits of top targets if valuations are deemed to be too high’ and this could happen with the Mbeumo deal.
While the Red Devils ‘want’ Mbeumo, they ‘will refuse to pay beyond Omar Berrada’s predetermined price point’ and their other options include Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo and Eberechi Eze at Crystal Palace’.
Club chiefs are also somewhat scarred by three past deals for pricey flops. The report adds:
‘With club bosses panicked by Erik ten Hag’s start as manager in 2022, they spent more than £150 million on Casemiro and Antony in the space of seven days at the end of the window. The deals are now accepted as costly mistakes — in terms of both transfer fee and wages — from those inside Old Trafford.
‘Rasmus Højlund is another. There’s still some faith that the 22-year-old will turn into the prolific front-line striker they hoped they were getting when he arrived from Atalanta in the summer of 2023, but the pricey cost for his 14 Premier League goals in two years weighs heavily.’
